MLA backed project proves low cost satellite connectivity for whole of herd monitoring: MLA
Meat & Livestock Australia has announced the successful completion of an MLA Donor Company AgTech project that has demonstrated reliable and affordable two-way satellite connectivity for livestock and on-farm Internet of Things sensors across Australia. The project was led by eSAT Global, with Smart Paddock providing on-farm visualisation and Viasat delivering satellite connectivity.
Fuel shock and rate hike raises the pressures on businesses and households: CPA Australia
CPA Australia warns today’s interest rate rise will deepen the cost-of-living crisis and make it tougher for many small businesses – particularly those heavily reliant on fuel. With fuel prices surging, inflation remaining stubborn across essential goods and services, and consumer confidence weak, households and businesses face a perfect storm of rising costs and weakened resilience.
Fertiliser supply shocks are a wake-up call for Australian agriculture: Colin McGregor, Genesis Algae Innovation
Colin McGregor. Australia has an opportunity to think differently about how we support farm productivity. Instead of relying exclusively on imports, we can invest in locally produced biological and nutritional solutions that complement existing fertiliser systems and reduce pressure on global supply chains. At Genesis Algae Innovation, we have been working on one such approach using Australian-grown chlorella algae.
Lessons from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve
This article is a rerun of a piece I first published in these pages back in November 2023 ... Readers may recall the strategic fuel debate that ran hot a few years ago when the BP refinery in Perth was about to close and Australia suddenly realised it only had a couple of weeks of fuel reserves.
Fuel for thought: Roy Butler MP calls out federal failure on regional diesel security
Member for Barwon Roy Butler MP says the fuel supply pressure now being felt across regional New South Wales was foreseeable, avoidable, and made worse by a failure of planning at the federal and state level that he intends to keep pushing back against.
Impact of algal bloom drifts on 12 months since first detection: Cadell
Communities across regional South Australia continue to feel the effects of last year’s devastating algal bloom 12 months after the first detection of the bloom in waters near Victor Harbor. More than 4,500 square kilometres, equating to around 30 per cent of the state’s coastline was affected by the bloom...
Is regenerative agriculture really a win-win? Matthew Harrison
Matthew Harrison. It’s widely promoted for its environmental benefits. But how does it actually affect farm profitability and greenhouse gas emissions? Evidence remains limited. One reason is that regenerative agriculture is usually presented as a bundle of practices...
Fertiliser shock could push Australia “towards the gates of a recession”, farmers warn: TasFarmers
TasFarmers has warned that just as farmers grapple with a fuel supply crisis, alarm is now growing over surging farm fertiliser prices that could push food costs higher and deepen economic pressure ... TasFarmers President, Ian Sauer, said the impact would be felt across the core fertilisers farmers rely on to grow crops.
Opinion: Diesel and fertiliser – The two essentials powering Western Australia’s economy: Hunter
Right now across regional Western Australia something deeply concerning is unfolding. Farmers are being told their diesel deliveries have stopped. Some have been warned supply may not resume for weeks. Others cannot lock in deliveries at all. In some cases, operations have already ground to a halt simply because there is no fuel to run the machinery. This should alarm every Western Australian.
Choking on the price of urea
I’m continually amazed how many people can fly to Bali yet couldn’t point to it on a map. Ask them to name the countries that sit north of Indonesia and you’ll usually get a blank look. Yet geography still matters. In fact, it quietly dictates how the global economy works.
Heat and rain hampering vintage
Christine Webster. Heatwave conditions at the start of the 2026 Riverland vintage, followed by recent heavy rainfall in some parts of the region, are causing headaches for many wine grape growers. The Oxford Landing Winery’s regional viticulturist Glynn Muster said the long spell of hot weather in late January and February had initially caused heat stress to some vineyards.
Panic at the bowser
Hugh Schuitemaker. Pressure on fuel supplies has seen a Mallee area service station frequently used by Riverlanders run dry, and is adding to anxiety being felt by farmers and growers according to the region’s State MP. Karoonda’s independent service station was as of yesterday out of fuel, with shortages sparked by panic buying due to the war in the Middle East.
The Nationals’ fight for food security proceeds to the Senate: Webster
The Nationals are today taking another major step toward preserving Australia’s food security with the tabling of proposed laws to ban federal funding of projects that diminish prime agricultural land, or place it under foreign ownership.
TasFarmers calls for diesel guarantees as fuel surge threatens food security
TasFarmers has warned “without fuel there is no food”, calling on governments to guarantee diesel supplies for agriculture and freight as global tensions push fuel prices sharply higher. Diesel prices in parts of Tasmania have risen from about $1.87 to more than $2.17 per litre in the past week, creating uncertainty for farmers, contractors and freight operators across the state.
Land clearing linked to myrtle rust disease in native forests: QUT
New research has revealed past land clearing is increasing the vulnerability of native Australian forests to the invasive myrtle rust disease — with regrowth forests emerging as hotspots for impact.
World first glulam made from Aussie blue gum a win for Victoria’s Timber Towns: Timber Towns Victoria
The world’s first glue laminated timber made from Australian Blue Gum (Eucalyptus globulus), processed in Warrnambool, Victoria, has been unveiled at Mount Gambier’s new Forestry Centre of Excellence, marking a major breakthrough for plantation forestry and the communities that depend on it.
Immediate action needed to ensure fuel supply for our farmers: Chaffey
“There is fuel, but it is being kept for the city, a short-sighted approach that will have huge flow-on effects throughout regional areas and right back into the city. Planting is about to start across the electorate of Parkes and elsewhere but without diesel, it won’t happen. And how do farmers get their livestock to market?": Jamie Chaffey.
Barossa turns up the volume with Barossa Food & Wine Village
When the final siren sounds at Barossa Park on Saturday, 11 April, the party is just getting started as Tanunda’s main street transforms into the ultimate post-match destination with food, wine and entertainment. A hallmark event on the Festival of Footy calendar, the Barossa Food & Wine Village, returns for Gather Round 2026, reimagined on a bigger scale.
Mouse alert for WA growers – act now to reduce numbers before seeding: GRDC
Western Australian grain growers are urged to check their paddocks for signs of mouse activity in the lead up to seeding, with reports of high activity in the northern and southern agricultural regions. Growers north of Geraldton are reporting numbers as high as 40 mouse burrows per 100 square metres. Two or three burrows per 100 square metres would be cause for concern.
Farmers warn of conservation ‘land grab’: NSW Farmers Association
A controversial proposal from an anti-farming environmental group risks handing control of private land to government under the guise of conservation. NSW Farmers’ Conservation and Resource Management Committee Chair Bronwyn Petrie said the Wentworth Group of Scientists’ “Blueprint for a Healthy Country and Thriving Regions” to farmers was deeply disingenuous.
The climate change vineyard: Why David Lowe’s 2021 pivot saved his 2026 vintage
Adaptation to climate change is happening at ground level amongst the vines in Australia. One winemaker in the vanguard is Mudgee winemaker David Lowe, who, in 2021, made a major decision in pivotting his certified organic and biodynamic estate away from "delicate French varieties" and towards hardy Mediterranean styles better able to handle a hotter, more volatile future.
Game on for Farrer
After 25 years under Sussan Ley, the electorate of Farrer is scrambling to find its new champion. The electorate of Farrer has been held by either the Libs or Nats since 1949, but that may soon change. Frustration over the crippling of our irrigated agriculture sector, with a huge reduction in water availability and an explosion in pricing, often freezing out the next generation of farmers, is fuelling the winds of change.
