Agriculture

Logging contractors in Central and West Gippsland with virtually no work, a large mill in Orbost running out of log supply, while a new poll shows Victorians overwhelmingly support home grown timber for housing. Welcome to the paradox and crisis facing Victoria’s forest industry; the native forest sector, largely based in Gippsland, is at a virtual standstill due to legal action by environmentalists and decisions by the Supreme Court, as demand for native hardwood because of its beauty, strength and durability remains high.

Ivanhoe Dry Times Truck, Tractor, Car and Bike Show 1-2 October, 2022

Quorn, situated in the beautiful Flinders Ranges, will hold its annual show on Sunday 25th September from 9.00 pm until 4.00 pm. The population is approximately 1200 people, and our show is the most northern in South Australia.

Murray Bridge Agricultural & Horticultural Show Society Inc.

Agricultural Pastoral & Show Society of Lockhart Inc. The Lockhart community is excited to once again be holding its annual show on Sunday 25th September...

Kristin Murdock. Biosecurity is a buzzword in the agricultural industry, now more than ever with the recent threat of foot and mouth disease and an infestation of varroa mite affecting bees in New South Wales. Vineyards are just as vulnerable to risks and with that in mind, Willo Brown from Oparina Wines in Padthaway has put his university IT skills to good use creating an app called myVineyard.

Chris Oldfield. Red biosecurity signage will soon mushroom on many farm entrances across the SE, along with wash down facilities for visitors – vets, various contractors, shearers, trucks and stock agents. Even friends and relatives visiting farming families will be required to fill out details about where they have been, and where they will go next.

Kirstin Nicholson. Cohuna’s Dean Smith has just returned from the Royal Adelaide Show with a haul of Grand Champion ribbons. Dean and his family own Strzboer Goat Stud and breed Fullblood Boer Goats, the fullblood meaning that there is traceability with genetics back to South Africa. With 10 years of showing experience at Sydney Royal Easter Show and numerous local and interstate shows, Adelaide had been beckoning.

After more than six years of multi-disciplinary research, the Q Fever Group ... has released the findings of its flagship research project,  Taking the Q (query) out of Q fever. The project findings fell into three broad themes; improving knowledge and management of Q fever in dairy goat herds; understanding Q fever in the environment; and structures to support Q fever management across the human, animal and environmental health sectors.

There is no better time than now. Australian agriculture is primed and ready to take on the next five years with a strong sense of purpose, determination, and excitement for the possibilities that lie ahead.

John O'Donnell considers a recent US report on fire and land management, "Wildland Urban Interface: A Look at Issues and Resolutions", and finds that it holds valuable lessons that could be adapted for Australian land and bushfire management.

It’s  been nearly two years since  fall armyworm was  first  detected in Australia, and in that time  the  pest  has made its presence felt. With the ability to travel vast distances of up to 100 kilometres overnight, and an appetite for summer crops, the fall armyworm can devour large quantities of crops  – including ginger – in  a matter of days.  

Farmers and regional communities are bracing for yet another soaking with the Bureau of Meteorology confirming another summer of La Nina ... “People are trying to rebuild and get back on top of things, but another huge rain would just be devastating for us”: Northern Rivers farmer Neil Baker.

After six months of silence, steam from the sugar mill chimneys punches into a clear sky before quietly dissolving into the blue. It is a welcome and familiar sight for residents of the small riverside village. Finally, cane is being crushed again and its back to work at Sunshine Sugar in Broadwater.

Rising input costs combined with fears of a foot and mouth disease incursion have weighed heavily on optimism in Australia’s farm sector in the latest quarter, according to the Rabobank Rural Confidence survey. Despite extraordinary strength in farm balance sheets and the overall health of the sector following more than two years of high rainfall and exceptional commodity prices, more farmers now believe conditions are set to worsen over the year ahead rather than improve.

Some older farmers will remember the Australian superphosphate bounty of $12/tonne that was on offer between 1964 to 1974.  Some might have even been at this Perth rally when farmers roughed up Gough Whitlam after he said he was pulling the plug on the bounty ... more hard policy decisions should have been made to cut tariffs and industry support right across Australia to put an end to the endless drip of governments ...

Located in the Central West of New South Wales, Tullinga White Dorpers was established in 2005.

"These new nature reserves provide an important ecological link to other reserves in the area supporting our native species. Through the upcoming release of the draft Forest Management Plan 2024-2033, the community will get the chance to have their say in caring for the health of our forests" : WA Environment Minister Reece Whitby.

Global dairy market fundamentals have shifted course in Q3 2022, from extreme tightness to visible but modest loosening. A  potential collision between supply growth and demand is  approaching, with Q4 year-on-year milk supply growth, weak Chinese import demand, and broader demand rationing in developing countries weighing on forecasts, according to the latest international dairy market report from Rabobank.

Kristin Murdock. While foot and mouth disease (FMD) remains active in Indonesia, officials there say they hope to bring the outbreak under control by the end of the year thanks to a rollout of vaccinations. The country’s FMD Task Force spokesperson, Professor Wiku Adisasmito, said there had been more than 450,000 cases of FMD confirmed or suspected across 22 of the country’s 37 provinces.