Agriculture

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO), Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) and Department of Home Affairs have joined forces under the Shadow Economy Taskforce to investigate labour hire providers suspected of unlawful conduct in the agriculture industry through surprise visits in the Gatton region in Southeast Queensland.

As key players in the food supply chain set targets for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, Australia’s dairy sector is grappling with how to best transition to lower- emissions production, and how the cost will be borne, Rabobank says in newly-released research.

Some of Victoria’s most popular inland fishing spots will be drawcards for anglers this weekend when the annual Murray cod fishing season opens on Sunday. Cod opening is Christmas come early for many freshwater fishers and follows the annual three-month closed season – applicable to most waters north of the Great Dividing Range – which gives the iconic native species a chance to breed in peace.

The passion of grain growers for the responsible stewardship of the land is a clear message farmers are sharing with Australian consumers in a new information series for the community.  The information series promoted by GrainGrowers highlights a modern, high-technology approach that allows growers to maximise available growing conditions, delivering high-quality, safe food to consumers while protecting the land.  

Farmers who hold properties in self-managed super funds (SMSFs) have had a win, with Labor delaying its shocking SMSF tax policy until after the next election.

In his latest attempt to channel Australia’s wealth into government-approved projects, Chalmers announced plans to steer the Future Fund toward housing and renewables, claiming these priorities will secure both national prosperity and a moral high ground. But if the Treasurer is serious about backing industries with real potential, it’s time to herd the Future Fund into the sheep yards of Western Australia, where $200 million could establish a state-of-the-art abattoir to breathe life into a sector gasping under the weight of Canberra’s policy redirection.  

Labour shortages in the horticulture sector have eased slightly, according to a report from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES). ABARES executive director Dr Jared Greenville said the report, based on a survey of over 2,000 horticulture farms across Australia, showed a fall in the number of farms struggling to find workers.

Rural Aid is calling on Australians to provide a much-needed hand up for our struggling farmers this Christmas. Farmers across South Australia, Victoria, and the southern parts of New South Wales are currently enduring a devastating drought and need our help – so too families in Southwest WA who are recovering from their driest start to cropping season on record.

More than 500 stakeholders from across the beef supply chain have walked away optimistic about the future and ready to collaborate on the big issues facing the industry, following last Thursday’s Cattle Connect producer day … Cattle Australia’s inaugural conference and producer day, providing delegates the opportunity to hear from Australian and global experts on the changing dynamics of food production.

The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) is urging the Victorian Government to consider a complete overhaul of the state’s truck wash network to plug major gaps in Victoria’s biosecurity preparedness safety net.  VFF Livestock President Scott Young said the recent closure of the truck wash facility at the Pakenham saleyards has exposed how fragile the state network is.  

A grinning musterer taking a mob of cattle out at sunset has taken out the top prize in the 2024 National Agriculture Day photo and video competition. National Farmers’ Federation President David Jochinke said Bronte Tremlett’s striking shot won the judges over in a record field of 500 entries.

Australia has the opportunity to cement itself as one of the key beef suppliers into South- East Asian markets – as the appetite for beef continues to grow among the region’s consumers, according to agribusiness specialist Rabobank.

Ian Osborne. The 1922-established Group Settlement Scheme aimed to avert an annual loss of £940,000 to WA from the purchase of butter, preserved milk and cream, cheese, bacon and hams from the Eastern States. Settlers were placed on the land in groups of adjoining blocks so they could share the infrastructure and services installed before their arrival and the load of land development work thereafter.

The Federal Government’s push to go ‘green’ appears to be spiralling out of control, with new costs estimated that the transition will take $1.3 to $1.5 trillion … What do we get for our money? Cheap, reliable, centralised power generation, with technology that will last for more than half a century? Or expensive, decentralised, precious metal intensive, unreliable, short-lived technology that will carve across some of Australia’s most precious landscape?

“Blackwood to the Beach” Bridgetown Agricultural Society Inc. Since 1885, the strength and resilience of the Committee and the Community has ensured the continuation of Bridgetown’s...

The Western Bundjalung community’s Ngullingah Jugun Aboriginal Corporation is working with Forestry Corporation to bring together knowledge of cultural burning with government bushfire management. A fire training course has been held in Jubullum Village, near Tabulam … the fire training will improve both the community and government response to wildfires.

GrainGrowers has called on the federal government to work with industry to ensure Australian growers can tap into biotechnology developments and deliver timely access to innovative crop genetics.

Sebastian Calderon. Almost 40 women gathered within almond orchards in Loxton ... to welcome industry newcomers, compare notes and learn more about Riverland production. Believed to be the first time a gathering exclusively for women working in the industry had taken place ... the event was ... deemed a total success.