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Sentinel - a step towards national pest surveillance

A new mobile plant pest surveillance unit is a step towards a nationally coordinated approach to plant pest surveillance aimed at informing grower pest management and providing early detection and improved market access.
Read full storyPort in shape for first Australian grain exports

A project to give South Australian farmers a new way of shipping their grain to global markets is close to commissioning following the delivery of a transhipment vessel.
Read full storyNation’s farm confidence rebounds to highest level in almost five years

Results at a glance: ■ Significant rain prompts major turnaround in farmer sentiment across Australia, despite ongoing effects of drought and bushfire ■ Farmers are confident of return to better seasons and improved farm incomes ■ Strong commodity prices are fuelling farmer optimism ■ Confidence up in all states, with most notable swings in NSW and Queensland ■ Survey finds nearly 70% of farmers expect climate change will impact their business in the next decade, with 20% expecting that impact to be major
Read full storyIncrease pulse inoculant in dry conditions this season

Growers planning to dry sow pulses on soils responsive to inoculation this season are encouraged to double the rate of peat inoculant or use a granular inoculant which delivers a high number of rhizobia at sowing to increase the likelihood of successful nodulation and nitrogen fixation.
Read full storyNew appointment to make mungbeans even healthier

The Queensland Government has appointed a dedicated mungbean pathologist to further develop and protect the State’s $100 million a year industry.
Read full storydrumMUSTER collects 35 millionth container for recycling

On Friday 6 March 2020, in the town of Renmark, South Australia, Agsafe’s drumMUSTER program’s 35 millionth agvet chemical container was collected. The milestone container was delivered to the Renmark Refuse Depot which holds a regular collection of agvet containers each month.
Read full storyLong-term view key to $100 billion agriculture target

Reaching the target of $100 billion in agricultural output will require industry to take a long term view, and continue to take hard choices that lift farm productivity and keep Australian exports competitive against rivals, ABARES executive director Dr Steve Hatfield-Dodds told the 2020 ABARES Outlook Conference in Canberra recently.
Read full storyIndependent science based regulation needs defending from activist attacks and community ignorance

In an address to the inaugural international conference on the regulation of agvet chemicals and technologies at the University of New England, Chief Executive Officer of the peak industry organisation for the plant science sector, Matthew Cossey, declared that Independent science-based regulation needs defending from activist attacks and community ignorance.
Read full storyGranular legume inoculant revolutionises sowing

Alosca Technologies’ bentonite clay-based granular inoculant, developed for Australian conditions, has revolutionised the way pasture and cropping legumes are sown.
Read full storyFMC Corporation Commits AU$150,000 to Support Australian Bushfire Relief Efforts

FMC Corporation has announced a commitment of AU$150,000 to support local farmers, communities, and businesses that have been devastated by recent Australian bushfires.
Read full storyFall armyworm found in Torres Strait, prompting biosecurity alert amid fears for Australian crops

A moth that has decimated crops across the world has been detected in Australia for the first time.
Read full storyFirst release of genetically engineered moth could herald new era of crop protection

A newly published study reports a successful, first-ever open-field release of a self-limiting, genetically engineered diamondback moth, stating that it paves the way for an effective and sustainable approach to pest control.
Read full storyHow will the coronavirus affect agriculture in Australia?

The coronavirus outbreak is already having a severe impact on China’s foodservice and on-trade channels and this could become “more serious and longer-lasting” if the virus is not contained in the next six to eight weeks, leading agribusiness banking specialist Rabobank has warned.
Read full storyEmerging market for alternative proteins an opportunity for Australian agriculture

Research into the changing landscape of protein production in Australia estimates that there will be an additional opportunity of $19.9 billion for the sector by 2030, of which $3.1 billion is attributed to alternative protein categories.
Read full storyCrop assessment trials prove drone accuracy

Drones have proven be just as accurate at taking plant measurements as more hands-on traditional methods, paving the way for a range of agricultural applications. A two-year University of Adelaide project funded by the South Australian Grain Industry Trust used drone imagery to measure biomass, growth rate and greenness at trial sites in the wheat belt of South Australia.
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