With harvest less than halfway through I am loathe to be too positive about how things are going but certainly the stage is set for a very good year right across the Wimmera and Mallee. Some people are talking about harvesting some of the biggest per hectare yields they’ve ever seen (on a paddock by paddock basis).
Despite a few quality issues with barley and a few grumbles over prices the main concern seems to be managing fire risk, particularly in those big lentil crops. I hope everyone’s harvest is safe and breakdown free.
It has been a joy to drive around the district over the last few months with green, thriving crops as far as the eye can see. The positive impact of a good year on the overall mood and mental wellbeing of people, not only farmers, can’t be underestimated and I have lost count of the number of happy conversations I’ve had with people not involved in farming about how pleased they are about the great year we have had so far.
Over the last couple of months, as well as driving around enjoying the crops, I’ve been busy with my usual mix of different roles for BCG. As well as “too many meetings”, as my kids tell me, I was interviewed by consultant Phillip Guthrie for our new data pilot project, had a brief spot on the telly, met with grower groups from across Australia to discuss working more closely together and attended our Research Committee meeting where we identify new blue sky ideas.
However, one of the highlights of my month was catching up with James Hunt in his new role at La Trobe Uni. Chris Sounness and I have recently visited both La Trobe and Melbourne universities to keep spreading the word about BCG and highlight some research opportunities for universities in the Mallee and Wimmera.
One idea we’ve identified, that was also floated with our philanthropic partners, is about getting a mix of researchers to our region to tackle some of the really tricky problems in agriculture. Problems such as identifying how improving farming efficiencies impacts on farming communities; or how we grow clean, green high quality food but many of our farmers struggle with obesity, ill health and diabetes; or how we might realise the benefits of precision agriculture if we are forever playing connectivity catch up.
Many of these issues are long-term and seemingly intractable, but we hope that by getting people from outside the industry (such as IT specialists, sociologists, engineers) along with exports from within the industry (consultants, CSIRO researchers, BCG staff) and immersing them in the BCG farming community, then we may come up with some really innovative ways to approach these ‘wicked’ problems that have so much impact on how we grow our crops and live our lives. More on this space following a lot more meetings and discussions to come.
At the BCG AGM in October, farmer board members Alan Bennett, Brad Martin and Ian McClelland were re-appointed and we farewelled Brian Barry from Manangatang. The appointments of Dr Sara Hely and David (Rock) Hudson were also ratified.
We announced a good surplus of over $100,000 which is always a great achievement for a not-for-profit like us, particularly when so much of our money comes from projects. The better we manage our finances the better we can undertake work that really makes a difference to our farming members and their communities.
Our commitment to achieving a surplus each year has meant that, among other things, we have been able to increase the field trials we undertake on topics specifically identified by members and were also able to purchase a new drone. It will be really interesting to see if new technologies like this have a useful place on the farm.
Is it too soon to say Merry Christmas? With so many tonnes to be harvested between now and then I think so.
