News

“Most people’s litmus test as to how well their world is going is that they can buy a loaf of bread, a litre of milk and some fuel on the way home – then all is okay.” Collins Creek resident Ray Skelton said this when he addressed council at the June 9 Kyogle Council meeting. 

The risk of H5 bird flu affecting Australian wildlife such as freshwater ducks, geese and black swans has increased with the confirmation of the deadly avian influenza found in a non-migratory bird in South Australia.

Labor is delivering an Australian-first battery in the Latrobe Valley to drive down power prices. The SEC’s fourth project, SEC Energy Works near Morwell is a 143-hectare site that will host multiple renewable energy technologies.

Communities in the Murray-Darling Basin are calling on the Federal Government to stop, after SunRice attributed major changes to Australian milling sites directly to slashed water for farming under the Basin Plan, putting hundreds of jobs at risk. “The industry has been warning the Federal Government of this exact risk for years, and now the worst-case scenario is unfolding,” said Zara Lowien, CEO of the National Irrigators’ Council (NIC).

The Southern Highlands will become a destination for readers, writers and performers this July as the Southern Highlands Writers' Festival celebrates its 15th anniversary and the region hosts its inaugural Australian Poetry Slam heat.

As part of the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists 2026, the NT Department of Agriculture and Fisheries is highlighting the people who drive the pastoral industry and showcasing the importance of rangelands ... Livestock Extension Officer Caleb Schwartz recently visited Ross and Jo Stanes, who manage Lyndavale Station and the Lyndavale Cattle Company, located 280km south-west of Alice Springs.

The City of Coffs Harbour's Council Chambers is no stranger to a contest of words, but the verbal theatrics will go next level when it hosts the local heat of the 2026 Australian Poetry Slam. Unscripted and uncut, this popular live event (with language and themes which may not be suitable for young ears) is set to rattle the house in the River Oak Room at Yarrila Place on 11 August. 

There are big strides being made in research within the Thoroughbred world all of the time, but how can we ensure that the new best practice standards identified in the literature are adopted by the industry? That is a question that the AgriFutures Thoroughbred Horses Program and applied behavioural science company Evidn are seeking to answer together in their new project, launched earlier this year.

Artificial intelligence, drones, elite pineapple genetics, and sustainable farming practices will take centre stage when Australia's pineapple industry gathers for the 2026 Pineapple Field Days in Hervey Bay from 30 – 31 July. 

Western Sydney University researchers have led the development of Australia’s first national database of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi, mapping the hidden fungal networks beneath our feet that support plant health, soil processes and ecosystem resilience.

Large-scale field research data from six years of continuous cropping on a 100 ha paddock in Western Australia showed that, in the 300m deep rooting depth, the Seedbed Conditioner treatment produced a 48 per cent increase in soil carbon over the no-tillage treatment.

After almost a decade in opposition, the Liberals and Nationals have rediscovered their appetite for holding ministers to account. The hunt is on for political scalps before the next election and, if I were the WA Minister for Agriculture, I would not be sleeping particularly well.

Nancy Whittaker. Tomorrow will be the start of The Great Teddy Bear Adventure (GTBA) in Maldon, from 10am - 4pm. Main Street and High Street will be awash with about 35 delightful Teddy Bear window displays, while according to Felicity Howard the Progress Hall will resemble an enchanted forest. It will be filled with live music, storytelling, and a teddy bear parade with prizes!

Speaking of the heartbreak, devastation, frustration, and emotional trauma they have experienced every day since their loved one vanished, families and friends of missing people stepped forward to share their stories and give evidence at a NSW Parliamentary Inquiry in Grafton last week.

Just days after his 90th birthday Lower Clarence athlete Tom Hancock set four Australian records against Masters competitors including records that hadn’t been broken in 30 years.

Many memories were made at the Upper Forest Springs School which was on the corner of Forest Springs Road and The Springs Road. Opened as a Provisional School in 1898 it then became the Upper Forest Springs School in 1909, closing in 1961.

The CEFC, Aviva Investors and Gresham House have launched a groundbreaking $142 million project to invest in sustainable forestry plantations in Tasmania, creating local jobs and injecting significant capital into the regional economy while generating high integrity Australian Carbon Credits Units (ACCUs) and protecting an important Ramsar wetland.

Hope Vale artist Daisy Hamlot has been awarded the Premier's Award for Excellence, leading the honour roll at the 2026 CIAF Art Awards announced today at Tanks Arts Centre.

... one of Outback Queensland’s most iconic family tourism stories has come to an end ... Long before experiential tourism, agritourism and wellness travel became recognised industries, Ian and Nan Pike were quietly creating unforgettable visitor experiences in the tiny outback town of Eulo.

Testing at CSIRO’s Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness has confirmed four additional detections of H5 high pathogenicity avian influenza (bird flu). This includes a detection in a greater crested tern, found near Robe, South Australia. This is the first detection of H5 bird flu in an Australian wild non-migratory seabird. 

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