Farming

In weather that could only be described as tropical, around 30 people attended a very hot and humid Murray Plains Meat Co-Operative open day on Friday December 6. After nine years of advocacy planning and cooperation with Murray River Council the micro abattoir has come to life.

The highly anticipated Costello Rural Upper Murray Christmas Cattle Sale saw an excellent yarding of more than 950 locally bred, grass-fed cattle at the Corryong Saleyards, with strong buyer competition both on-site and online via Auctions Plus.

Yola Cox. Nestled in the picturesque Tooma Valley, the Mannus Creek and its surrounding environment have long been a lifeline for the region’s farms, families and wildlife. However, a series of catastrophic decisions spanning decades have turned this once-thriving ecosystem into a disaster zone. The Mannus Dam was licensed in the 1980s to Ellis Williams. While the licence suggested the dam would support pisciculture, this promise was never realised.

...Uncle Owen Whyman presented as part of an Indigenous panel at COP29 during the ‘United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’ in Baku, Azerbaijan. Uncle Owen is a respected Wilcannia community leader, volunteer board member of the Indigenous Peoples’ Organisation, Chair of the Paroo-Darling National Park Co-management Committee, Deputy Chair of the Mutawintji National Park Board of Management, board member of North-Western Water Council, and founder and convenor of the Indigenous - Aboriginal Party of Australia (IAPA).

CANEGROWERS has today launched the 2024 Sugarcane Transport Load Restraint Guide, an essential tool created in partnership with the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR).  This industry-specific guide aims to enhance road transport safety and streamline compliance for sugarcane growers and transport operators.

Grain Producers Australia is urging growers to be alert, vigilant and proactive, to maintain high standards for pesticide application, and protect crops from spray drift damage. GPA’s timely warning comes after Cotton Australia recently raised their concerns about early signs of off-target spray drift damage, with ongoing wet weather and seasonal challenges, leading to escalating weed growth.

Lockyer Valley Fruit & Vegetable Processing Company Limited (‘Lockyer Valley Foods’), the circular economy fruit and vegetable processing facility, has launched a $50M Series A funding round to begin construction ... Founder and CEO Colin Dorber said the Lockyer Valley – known as ‘Australia’s salad bowl’ – is vital to Australia’s food security ... ARR.News interviewed Chair Murray Chatfield to find out more about the facility, the only one of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere.

Bovaer is getting a lot of attention – and not the good kind. Bovaer is a feed additive for cattle – including some used to supply milk and beef sold at Coles supermarkets. Why? Because Bovaer reduces cattle methane emissions (in burps) significantly. Bovaer is made using silicon dioxide, propylene glycol and the organic compound 3-nitroxypropanol (known as 3-NOP).

Alex Morrison. The Prime Minister has begun an anti-bullying campaign. It’s welcome. He could start right at home with his own government who are allowing TCV to bully farmers in this district into accepting the power lines that come with wind turbines. Their treatment of affected landholders along VNI West power line route is a disgrace, the so-called negotiations and compensation offers are a farce.

Hundreds of thousands of people around Australia followed Farm to Fork with Manu – a digital mini-series campaign by Ingham’s - taking a peek behind the scenes in our country’s poultry farming and processing industry to see how our nation’s top-selling meat-protein, chicken, makes its way from the farm to your fork.

A smart irrigation system powered by artificial intelligence will tell sugarcane farmers when and where to water their crops in an advance that could one day revolutionise agriculture – and help preserve the health of the Great Barrier Reef.

Lockhart shearer Nicki Guttler will attempt the Women’s 8-Hour Merino Lamb Shearing World Record at Parkdale Merino Stud near Dubbo on December 21 2024. The current record of 395 lambs was set on November 17, 2024 near Yass.

Tangible progress has been made with the Local Development Strategy (LDS) ‘Innovation Upper Murray’, with several opportunities now at Stage 3 of the process - developing projects, with community members and experts, through Innovation Working Groups (IWG).

Herd contraction in the world’s four largest beef-producing nations – the US, Brazil, China and Europe – is expected to lead to the first reduction in global beef supply since the Covid-19 pandemic, altering trade flows in the year ahead, Rabobank says in a recently-released research report. In its latest (Q4) Global Beef Quarterly, titled Navigating declining global production, uncertainty in 2025 … Brazil and the US are likely to lead declines in beef production next year.

Honor Auchinleck. Artist Simon White’s mural ‘The Men and their Mounts’ in Corryong tells the story of the bush horses or brumbies and the stockmen who mustered and brought them down from the High Country and the bush-covered hills surrounding the Upper Murray before the First World War. The breeders of the Remounts and Walers often turned the young horses out into the bush to toughen them up and then brought them back in as four-year-olds for sale to buyers for the British Army in India.

The largest enrolment of wool classing professionals in the state sat its final exam last week at Hay’s TAFE campus. Taught by one of Australia’s leading classers, Hay’s Kayla Garner, 14 students from Hay, Ivanhoe, Booroorban, Broken Hill, Adelong and Trangie were vigorously assessed.

Hugh Schuitemaker. Riverland stone fruit growers have seen "large amounts" of certain crops wiped out at a critical time, following last week’s heavy rainfall ... "We all appreciate a good rain, and we all need it of course – especially the farmers – but the reality is that it does do a lot of damage, in terms of stone fruit, depending on timing'; Summerfruit SA executive officer Tim Grieger.

Escorting and helping our judge, Hamish Mines, around the 23 crops entered in this year’s competition was a pleasant surprise and a testament to modern farming practices and the skills of our farmers. Despite the tough season, expected yields and grain quality will still be good in the crops inspected and in others we drove by on our 200km tour of the Kaniva district.

Love Lord Howe. Recently won Gold at the NSW Tourism Awards. Benny’s Fish Truck. Recently awarded second-best fish and chips on offer nation wide. Thornleigh Farm Marmalade. Recently won Gold at the Australian Marmalade Awards.

Renowned industry professionals Heather Ellis, Linda Tillman, and Shaun Leisegang will share their expertise and insight on day one of the national gathering of Australia's 582 agricultural shows. In ‘AI for the Show Movement: Simplifying Operations for Better Focus’, Shaun Leisegang, General Manager at award-winning technology services provider, Tecala, will show attendees how artificial intelligence can streamline key tasks in the show movement.  

Australian native stingless bees are vital for pollinating many of the country’s unique native plants, but these bees may be facing challenges due to rising temperatures. Recognising the important role these bees play in the ecosystem, an AgriFutures Australia Business Innovation Grant supported Ann Ross and her team at Hive Haven to develop an innovative solution: the Hive Haven V10.