December 13, 2016
Benefits of good season flow statewide
By WADE DABINETT
Chairman, Grain Producers SA, and grain grower at Parilla
SOUTH Australian grain growers are harvesting the largest crop in our state’s history at 10.5 million tonnes – enough to fillan Olympic size swimming pool 3500 times.
This year’s harvest is about 50 percent larger than the long-term average and is worth about $3 billion to the state’s economy – and that’s before any value-adding processes, such as turning barley into malt for beer or wheat into flour for bread.
This is thanks to above-average rainfall in winter and spring – when cereal, oilseed and legume crops are mostly grow in SA – and minimal unseasonal hot or frosty weather, which have affected the previous year’s crops.
The grain industry is the engine room for many regional towns, and rural communities and businesses will benefit as farmers use their profits to purchase farm inputs, machinery and infrastructure or pay off debt.
This has huge flow-on effects for Adelaide too because farmers will shop, renovate, holiday, fund children’s education and seek professional advice and services in the city.
And behind the numbers, there is an industry filled with professional, innovative and tech-savvy business people building their farms and contributing to vibrant rural and regional communities.
However, while the grains sector is a significant contributor to the state’s economy – producing about one-quarter of SA’s gross food and wine revenue – we have not been able to fully capitalise on the season that we have had because of selected state-based policies.
If SAfarmers were allowed to grow genetically modified crops, we could have increased yields and further grown the state’s economic pie.
Canola is one GM crop that is well suited to grow in SA. Growers want to reduce their chemical use by growing GM canola which is not onlyhigher yielding but also more resistant to pests and diseases, which would then be marketed to Europe for biofuel production, where most of SA canola crop is destined for again this year.
At present, we are missing out on these opportunities and this year alone, I estimate it has cost me $700,000 in lost income because I do not have the choice to grow the crops I need to on my own farm. I farm 30 kilometres from Victoria, where producers grow GM canola, putting them at a significant advantage to SA farmers.
Relying on climate conditions has its risks, and despite the record haul, yields in some parts of the state have been reduced by hail, pests or weeds. We need to continually improve how we farm and research and development is one of the most important tools for farmers to do this.
SA growers are champions of innovation because we are the only state in Australia to have a levy paid for directly by growers which funds local research, called the SA Grain Industry Trust.This year,SA growers will spend more than $50 millionon scientific research with universities, government and other research institutesto improve farming technology and sustainable land use.
We are veryfortunate that Adelaide is home to the world-renowned Waite research precinct however support for it from state and federal governments is dwindling. And to make matters worse, because of the GM moratorium in SA, we are now seeing money from the private sector for R&D going interstate instead of being spent locally.
So while we are seeing the benefits of a great season in SA, the industry does have its challenges which we are pursuing at both a state and federal level and hope to soon see change so we can continue to be a shining light for the state’s economy.As other industries come and go, agriculture and in particular the grains industry will continue to deliver for this state.