The Australian Government has today announced the first round of its A$99 million ‘Action on the Ground’ program to support farmers as they adjust to Australia’s new carbon tax regime. Action on the Ground is funding farmers over the next six years to trial and demonstrate on-farm practices that reduce greenhouse gas emissions such as methane and nitrous oxide or increase soil carbon. The program is a part of the Carbon Farming Futures Fund under the government’s A$1.7 billion Land Sector... ...Read more »

Australia is facing a huge glut of potatoes. Prices for potatoes for the Australian domestic market will soon drop below  farm production costs. Greengrocers and supermarkets are acquiring potatoes at bargain prices. We are constantly reminded by the Australian Government and its consultant experts that the world is running out of food. They tell us that Australia needs to produce more food for the impending famine faced by the world. Yet, we already have the scenario of many countries currently... ...Read more »

Potato growers across Australia are threatening to plough surplus potatoes back into the ground or leave them to rot in what is reported to be one of the biggest potato gluts in Australian history. Australian potato grower and Chairman of the Australian Potato Industry Advisory Committee, David Nix, has seen double the tonnage of potatoes on his farm in Atherton, Queensland, compared to last year. Mr Nix told Australian Food News today, “This year has brought a wave of excess potatoes across... ...Read more »

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has launched a guide for Australian businesses on attributing price increases or impacts to the carbon price cost. Discussing the ACCC’s role in policing claims attributing price rises to the carbon pricing mechanism, ACCC chairman Rod Sims said today that the new guide aims to assist businesses in understanding their rights and obligations. He said, “Business costs increase all the time, and businesses are free to set their own prices. ... ...Read more »

The Australian Government will provide pig farmers with the opportunity to earn carbon credits for burning their pig manure, if proposed new legislation is approved under the government’s new Carbon Farming Initiative. The Federal Government has established the Carbon Farming Initiative to develop carbon offsetting methodologies so Australia’s farmers can receive credits for reducing their carbon output. Under the Federal Government’s ‘Methodology for the Destruction of Methane Generated... ...Read more »

A national standard for the amount of time allowed between the last feed and slaughter of bobby calves in Australia has been agreed to by the main players in the Australian dairy industry. Bobby calves are the young male calves which are slaughtered for human consumption every year. They are the bi-product of the dairy industry as milking cows must be impregnated to lactate each year and the male calves are eliminated since they cannot produce milk. The industry decision came after Primary Industries... ...Read more »

A report released today by the Queensland Government predicts the State’s milk production will fall by 5 per cent for the year 2011/12. The report attributes the impacts of natural disaster recovery and the supermarket ‘milk war’ to estimated low production levels. According to the Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation (DEEDI) report, the gross value of milk production in the State of Queensland for 2011-12 is forecast at A$229 million, 5% lower than the final estimate... ...Read more »

Australia’s peak dairy farming body, Australian Dairy Farmers (ADF), has told a Senate Committee inquiry that Australian dairy farmers are being pushed out of business by supermarkets retailing milk at “unsustainable” prices. The ADF was addressing the Senate Economics References Committee Inquiry into the impacts of supermarket price decisions on the dairy industry. The inquiry met the ADF representatives on Thursday 6 October 2011. ADF President Chris Griffin said that in the last eight months,... ...Read more »

Australia’s peak farming industry body, the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) and multinational Australian-based Westpac bank have launched plans for a Blueprint for Australian Agriculture. The blueprint will allow Australia’s food producers to help map Australia’s role in global food production over the next 40 years. Launching the Blueprint at Parliament House, Canberra, NFF President Jock Laurie said, “This initiative provides the opportunity for industry stakeholders to highlight... ...Read more »

The ‘Farm Gate to Plate’ Bill proposed by Federal Independents Bob Katter MHR and Senator Nick Xenophon has been slammed by the Produce Marketing Association (PMA) which says that the costs of compliance would defeat its purpose.    The Bill (formally referred to as the Constitutional Corporations (Farm Gate to Plate) Bill 2011), as previously reported by Australian Food News, would require grocery retailers to display the farm gate price of fresh fruit and vegetables next to the retail... ...Read more »