Media Release

Twenty Sunshine Coast teams have battled it out at the RoboRAVE Australia annual robotics competition at the University of the Sunshine Coast, with ten of those teams from seven local schools winning across 15 divisions ... The energy was electric as students, aged eight to 20 representing 363 teams from across Queensland, ... raced to design, build and program fully autonomous robots to compete in the challenges for each division.  

Outgoing NSW Farmers President James Jackson says there is a great future ahead for Australian agriculture if governments and the public support the vital sector ... “Australia as a nation lags behind on backing farmers, with a government paper on food security this week revealing we have one of the lowest levels of agricultural support across the 37 OECD member countries – and when compared to major emerging economies."

Five new state junior  surfing champions have been crowned in Geraldton over the  weekend, as the final event of the 2022 Woolworths State Junior Surfing Titles presented by SunSmart, wrapped up yesterday in clean and contestable wavs at Back Beach.

The first train arrived at Huntly Station on Saturday morning after a 68-year absence, while trains returned to Raywood on Sunday morning for the first time in more than 40 years.

Learn more about Foot & Mouth Disease/ Lumpy Skin Disease + Q&A

For farmers across Australia the boundary between the home and the workplace is blurred. This is further complicated for those raising children when trying to balance the freedom that comes with living on lots of space with enforcing lifesaving safety precautions ... This Farm Safety Week, Farmsafe Australia is highlighting the importance of mitigating the risks that arise when home and workplace are intertwined.

Forestry Australia is delighted to announce the appointment of two new co-chairs to lead its Future Foresters Initiative (FFI) Committee. Alannah Rowe and David Faluyi will head up the committee made up of young forestry professionals and forest science students which aims to support career growth and foster the next generation of forestry leaders.

Ian Sauer, TFGA President believes that it is time for an independent or parliamentary review into legislation such as Land Acquisition Act 1993, Irrigation Company Act 2011, Hydro-Electric Corporation Act 1995 and other associated legislation, which allows for the authorised acquisition of land for the purpose of infrastructure ... An irrigation scheme was fully sold before the relevant GBE approached the Scott-Youngs’ and informed them they would need to acquire around 5 per cent of their land to locate a dam. This parcel included 20ha in the middle of the farm. Right outside their front door.

Jane Richter. The early onset of cold weather in Queensland coupled with great rains in the last 12 months means there is a bumper crop of newly maturing ginger being harvested right now. And shoppers should get the benefit ... if only the retail giants would pass on the huge cost cuts that they have been enjoying for at least the last month ... The wholesale market sale price in Sydney recently dropped to below $7 per kilo for fabulous fresh large-sized mature ginger, and yet the product is still being sold at $45 or more per kilo by the major retail chains.

A trail of Stories in Light in Regional South Australia Port Pirie City Park Projection will illuminate with a special feature each night throughout August, as one of the five featured Stories in Light sites on the CONSTELLATION Trail around regional South Australia. The connected trail uses larger than life moving images to explore future themes of science in collaboration with talented artists, animators and innovators across all five regions simultaneously.

Australia’s agricultural sector can expect to contend with elevated ocean container shipping costs and ongoing supply disruptions for at least another year before a ‘normalisation’ of the global ocean freight system, according to new research from Rabobank.

Key members of the rural sector joined the NSW Government at Sydney International Airport to send a message to travellers to do their bit to keep the highly contagious Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) out of Australia.

Installing wind turbines in just five sites in State owned pine plantations could generate up to 2.5 gigawatts of energy a year, a registration of interest process has revealed, prompting Forestry Corporation to formally call for Expressions of Interest to develop renewable energy generation and storage in plantations near Oberon, Sunny Corner, Bondo, Orange and Laurel Hill ... “Wind farms successfully operate in softwood forests overseas .. " : Gavin Jeffries.

A new project is underway to assist Western Australian sheep enterprises to adapt to a changing climate and build more resilient and sustainable businesses ... The three year project will assess the impact of projected climate scenarios for 2030 and 2050 on the productivity of key WA sheep producing regions, including Bruce Rock, Kojonup and Wagin.

Movement sensors used for human sleep assessments have been applied successfully to sheep to predict lambing dates and potentially enhance the precision of flock and farm management strategies. The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) tested the sensors on 416 Merino ewes and nine rams during mating at its Katanning Research Station, as part of a collaborative trial with Murdoch University and Australian Wool Innovation.

Making more out of the recent wet conditions and strengthening the resilience of the Murray–Darling Basin's ecosystems is the focus of this year's Annual Basin Environmental Watering Priorities ... MDBA's General Manager of Applied Science, Dr Matt Coleman said with more water in rivers and storages now was the time to capitalise on the fantastic fish and bird breeding events that have occurred and set our plants and animals up for even greater success.

AgriFutures Australia invests in research, development and extension and has partnered with the industrial hemp industry to support the industry reach the annual GVP target of $10 million by 2026. Central to this was the establishment of the Industrial Hemp Variety Trials (IHVT) which seeks to provide producers with a clear understanding of the optimal industrial hemp grain (seed) or dual purpose (seed and fibre) varieties for Australian conditions and provide growers the best opportunity for success.

Casey Dunn. Australian agritech startup, Bee Innovative is revolutionising the centuries-old practice of commercial pollination. Its groundbreaking technology gives growers a real-time insight into how well bees are pollinating a crop, enabling interventions that boost yield, quality and profitability ... And the recent detection of Varroa ... further demonstrates the importance of cutting-edge technology in the early detection, tracking, and eradication of incursions ... BeeID utilises advanced facial recognition technology ...

"The return of direct international passenger flights is a very exciting milestone for Tasmania in a much needed boost for our tourism operators recovering from the impacts of Covid 19": Michael Ferguson.

Central Highlands Regional Council are continuing to zoom in on flood management in the Gemfields with the installation of a new flood and camera gauge – Graves Hill ALERT. Located upstream of Graves Hill, the new automated river gauge includes an infrared camera which  enables visibility of flood waters day and night.  

Hepburn Shire Council is working in partnership with the City of Ballarat on advocating for a mountain biking program to be included in the 2026 Commonwealth Games and for competition to be held at the Creswick Trails. With this week’s State Government announcement that the games will be held between the 17-29 March 2026 both Councils are calling for both Mountain Biking to be included in the Victoria 2026 program, the Commonwealth’s first Regional Games and for the Mountain Biking program to be conducted at the Creswick Trails.