A word from the chairman: Australian Agronomy Conference

Views

I have just come back from attending the Australian Agronomy Conference in Ballarat where BCG was out in force sharing the results of our work with the scientific community. Overall, I think we had four staff members, two ex-staff members, two board members and one of the consultants we work very closely with presenting.

Over 300 people attended from CSIRO, GRDC, Agriculture Victoria, universities, grower groups, consultancy firms, state and federal government and others from across Australia and internationally. I was again amazed at how well so many knew the story of BCG, had visited Birchip, worked on projects with BCG or met Ian or John at some stage. Over our 25 years, our influence and reach has spread far, and certainly put our farming community on the map.

It was inspiring to be in a room of brilliant scientists, passionate researchers, dedicated agronomists from both the public and private sector who are each devoting their lives work to improving the prosperity of farming and feeding the world.

Over four days of talks and field trips the conference concentrated on the topic of ‘doing more with less,’ a theme that most of us farmers can relate to and there was much discussion about the cost-price pressures that farmers face.

There was a huge variety of talks. From the big picture like; whether or not the new age of digital agriculture and sensor technology and computer algorithms will spell the end of the agronomist. (I think we will still need someone to interpret what all the data means). We received a New Zealand perspective on lower inputs in pasture-based livestock systems, the story of a South Australian farmer who has sold up and bought land hundreds of kilometres away to beat rising land prices and the experiences of Rochester farmer Tom Acocks and how they’ve changed their dairy farm since the millennium drought really showed strength of conviction.

Others were far more specific, looking at wheat seed quality, precision irrigation, models to define frost damage, improvements to long term seasonal forecasts, deep banding phosphorus for higher yields, summer active perennial pastures to name but a few. The papers are available on the conference website and well worth a look. https://agronomyconference.com/program.

Photo taken by Phil Cranney (@philcranney). 

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