Priority Issues for Grain Growers in the Western Murray

Transcription

1 Pririty Issues fr Grain Grwers in the Western Murray Cntents Key Issues... 1 Why issues have becme wrse ver time... 5 Slutins t these issues... 6 Grain grwer cntributins... 8 GRDC R&D pririties... 8 Key Issues Infrmatin depicted in this survey was cllected by the Western Murray Land Imprvement Grup Inc. (WMLIG) via Survey Mnkey using the grup s , newsletter, scial media and website netwrks. Infrmatin was cllated by WMLIG prject fficer, Laura Kaylck under the supervisin f cmmunity supprt fficer Rger Knight. Data was cllected frm 14 respndents living in the western Murray regin. Respndents were asked t identify three key lcal and natinal issues which wuld be likely t gain cmmunity supprt. Each answer was summarised int the fllwing categries: Figure 1: Key issues identified by grain grwers in the western Murray regin 1 P a g e

2 The key issues identified were: 27% f prducers identified Marketing as the main issue impacting prducers in the western Murray. 60% f these peple classified it as a high pririty which has imprved, wrsened r remained unchanged ver the past five years Issues within this categry included: Figure 2: marketing issues identified by respndents; data is classified by number f respndents per issue Farmers identified that cmmdity price was the greatest cnstraint n their business, with lw marketing pwer frm the grwer in the cmmercial market. The price taker nature f their psitin has resulted in a narrw margin fr the grwer. Market price fluctuatins have been a cnstant surce f risk in farming enterprises. This is exacerbated by the lack f marketing pwer held by grwers, as they are nt nly impacted by the wrld market but als by re-seller margins. This in turn, lends t the insecure returns als identified abve. Stckpiling grain bth dmestically and internatinally has a heavy implicatin n individual cmmdity markets, better knwledge f these factrs when marketing prduce is needed. 2 P a g e

3 24% f prducers identified Crp Prtectin as a key issue 67% f farmers in this categry classified it as a high pririty issue which has becme wrse ver the past five years Issues in this categry included: Figure 3: crp prtectin issues identified by respndents; data is classified by number f respndents per issue There were a diverse number f respnses in terms f crp prtectin needs fr grwers in the western Murray regin. Weather fluctuatins are nt smething we can cntrl, but better ptins t manage this risk are needed. Pririties include: cntinued imprvement f drught and frst tlerance in wheat, barley, canla, peas and lentils. Waterlgging tlerance and fungicide ptins fr irrigated pulses such as lentils and chickpeas has als been identified as imprtant. Grup A and B herbicide resistance is becming prevalent in this regin due t a lack f rtatin and break crp ptins suitable fr heavy, sdic sils. Mre research specific t this agreclgical zne is needed. Muse cntrl has been an nging prblem fr grwers in the area with pest numbers fluctuating seasnally. Mre awareness f best practice fr rdent cntrl is needed within businesses. Cntinued research n the management f new pests such as the Russian Wheat Aphid is necessary t ensure that initial ecnmic threshlds and insecticide ptins are apprpriate and affrdable. Grain strage n-farm has been increasing in this regin, with investment in sils and grain bags becming mre cmmn. Mre wrkshps t increase awareness abut maintaining grain quality n-farm is needed. It shuld be nted that WMLIG held a grain strage and infrmatin day in 2017 with Peter Btta t discuss this tpic which was well received. Finally, farmers feel that there is a lack f independent agrnmic advice and much f the infrmatin they are prvided with is cmmercially mtivated. 3 P a g e

4 19% f prducers identified Water Availability and Input Csts as a key issue 86% and 71% f farmers classified them as high pririty issues which have becme wrse ver the past five years Issues within these categries included: Figure 4: water availability issues identified by respndents; data is classified by number f respndents per issue Water availability is a cre cncern fr farmers in the western Murray. Many f ur farmers are mixed irrigatin and dryland r entirely irrigatin dependent crpping enterprises. After the water refrm relating t the Murray Darling Basin Plan, many grwers in the area sld a large prtin f their water entitlements. This has resulted in uncertainty in rtatin planning fr farmers and altered business bjectives. There is little we can d abut water availability in general, but there is a large amunt f pprtunity fr the imprvement f irrigated crpping prductivity. Essentially it is imprtant t generate a higher return per megalitre due t the rising input cst f water. There has been sme research n irrigatin layut ptimisatin and irrigatin scheduling, hwever this needs t be cntinued t achieve reliable recmmendatins fr the adptin f imprved layuts and water management. Figure 5: input csts issues identified by respndents; data is classified by number f respndents per issue 4 P a g e

5 The escalatin f input csts was the mst cnstraining factr identified by farmers in this categry. The main thinking behind this is that csts have increased in line with inflatin, but cmmdity prices have nt. Hence returns are much lwer fr the grwer. The cst f freight is a large factr in this. Many train lines are n lnger used and as a result, grwers are respnsible fr the cst f carting their grain by truck t prts ver 400km away. Labur cst and availability is als an issue, with affrdable labur usually cming frm unskilled backpackers wh are nly lking fr seasnal wrk. The expense f hiring skilled, permanent staff is ften prhibitive. Why issues have becme wrse ver time Reasns given fr issues becming wrse include: MARKETING Insecure returns due t market fluctuatins Stckpiling grain in ther cuntries Need mre marketing ptins CROP PROTECTION Lack f chemical/crp rtatin chices New pest incursins Lack f cnsultatin n grwer needs Lack f rain during the grwing seasn Gvernment plicy f user pays fr research and advice WATER AVAILABILITY Reduced irrigatin water availability means mre prductivity is needed per megalitre Farm management is slw t adapt t new water plicies. Farmers are nw unsure f hw t structure their investments Irrigatrs becming mre accustmed t using the water market and have t cmpete with ther high value sectrs 5 P a g e

6 INPUT COSTS Inflatin increasing csts Temprary water price has increased due t higher demand thrugh reductin in available pl after recvery thrugh the Basin Plan. Exacerbated by uncertainty arund allcatin annuncement causing vlatility in the market Lack f gvernment supprt Slutins t these issues Slutins suggested fr the abve issues include: MARKETING Farmers suggested that they wuld like mre infrmatin n niche marketing pprtunities such as prduct branding fr reginal areas, with the aim f imprving prduct placement and marketing pwer. They als suggested that mre nging infrmatin n Free Trade agreements and resulting pprtunities with majr markets wuld help t alleviate market fluctuatins in sme high value crps such as Chickpeas. The cllatin f data frm a number f research agencies with infrmatin n marketing and financial business strategies wuld help t prvide ideas n ecnmic enhancement f farms. This wuld be mst user-friendly if prduced via a presentatin r wrkshp frmat. CROP PROTECTION Farmers felt that they are lacking quality advice due t the lack f independent gvernment funded agrnmists nw available. They feel that a reginal agrnmist/extensin fficer culd be funded thrugh grwer levies t prvide advice n majr agrnmic issues within each regin. This rle is already partially cvered within the Murray Lcal Land Services; hwever they are n lnger able t carry ut much n-farm extensin due t a change in the structure f their rles. As alluded t abve, cntinued research n varietal characteristics which have the ability t imprve the resilience f wheat, barley, canla, peas and lentils t drught and frst damage is needed t imprve reliability f yield. The adptin f high value crps such as chickpeas and lentils int crpping systems in the western Murray has led t a need fr mre agrnmic infrmatin n the management f irrigated pulses n heavy sils, especially in terms f irrigatin management and fungicide use. Further research int crp suitability and weed management is needed in the agreclgical zne t negate the rapid increase in grup A and B herbicide resistance. A mre diverse rtatin (with less f 6 P a g e

7 a cncentratin n wheat and barley) is necessary t enable a wider range f chemical and nn-chemical cntrl ptins fr ryegrass in particular. Mre awareness f best practice fr rdent cntrl is needed within businesses. Making ntes mre easily accessible n this tpic and supprting presenters will help t imprve pest management. Presentatins n the current research fr ecnmic threshlds and chemical ptins fr Russian Wheat Aphid wuld als aid grwer cnfidence in managing the new pest. WATER AVAILABILITY Water availability can be increased thrugh the imprvement f irrigated crpping prductivity. Sme ways f achieving this include duble-crpping summer and winter crps subsequently t use excess misture frm flded crps such as rice t imprve the water-limited yield ptential f a winter cereal such as wheat. Research in this area has been led by Rice Extensin (AgriFutures) and NSW DPI with sme n-farm trials run by the Mulamein Crpping Grup. This has been a gd start but culd use further backing as there is such a diverse range f issues assciated with dublecrpping. Examples include: waterlgging during establishment, uneven germinatin, nutrient tieup, stubble management and layut suitability. Recent research frm NSW DPI has identified wide variatin in waterlgging assciated with irrigatin layuts. This was as a result f inefficient layuts and sil characteristics such as high sdicity. These impacts were mst ntable fr the prductivity f winter cereals. Mre infrmatin is needed n best practice fr irrigatin layuts which will maximise the ptential f bth summer and winter crps. T increase awareness f water use and imprve planning cnfidence in irrigatin a whle farm water management plan culd be designed and implemented fr grwers in the western Murray, similar t what is already available t Cttn grwers thrugh WATERpak. The aim wuld be t measure water use acrss farm and t frecast a range f allcatin scenaris t aid lng-term planning, rather than grwers reacting t shrt-term frecasts and allcatin annuncements fr their decisin-making. INPUT COSTS Research int alternatives t decrease cst f freight is needed t help alleviate sme input csts assciated with transprt f grain, fertilisers, seed and much mre. Ideas fr this include: frmatin f cperatives fr the sle purpse f transprting bulk prduct, analysing ecnmics f rejuvenating ld train lines and bringing prcessing plants clser t rural lcatins rather than in cities. In terms f the cst and availability f labur it was suggested that visa extensin ptins shuld be researched in additin t the ptential fr specialist jb agencies t be pened fr agricultural emplyees. 7 P a g e

8 Grain grwer cntributins Lcal prducers were asked what grain grwers culd cntribute tward slving the issues they identified. Results can be seen belw, with 50% f grwers suggesting that they culd cntribute nfarm knwledge and 25% suggesting they culd test r supprt research. Figure 6: The cntributins grain grwers are willing t prvide in relatin t slving key issues. GRDC R&D pririties The key issues discussed abve crrespnd with the fllwing develpment pririties listed in the Grains Research and Develpment Crpratin Strategic Research and Develpment Plan : Figure 7: The alignment between key issues identified by grain grwers in the western Murray and the GRDC research and develpment pririties. The majrity f key issues identified by prducers related t imprving farm resurce bases fllwed by advancing prfitable farming systems. 8 P a g e