Last week, 17 participants from across Victoria travelled to Western Australia as part of BCG’s study tour focused on soil management, farming systems and innovation.
The diverse group included participants aged from 17 to over 50, representing a range of farming backgrounds and levels of experience. The mix of perspectives created valuable discussion and knowledge sharing throughout the tour.
Western Australian growers face some of Australia’s most challenging soils, driving decades of innovation in soil amelioration and machinery development. The tour gave participants the opportunity to see firsthand how long-term investment, research and practical innovation have transformed these soils into productive cropping country.
Across the week, participants visited leading growers, researchers, grower groups and machinery manufacturers, including Andrew and Todd Kenny, Ben and Sean Plozza, Ben Cripps, Waringa Farming, the Yuna Farm Improvement Group, Brad Smith, the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD), NuFab Engineering, the CBH Geraldton Port, Daniel and Dylan Birch, and the Liebe Group.
The visits explored a range of topics including soil amelioration, controlled traffic farming, deep ripping, time of sowing, machinery innovation and integrated weed management. Participants also saw how purpose-built machinery and practical innovation are helping growers overcome challenging soil constraints while improving productivity and profitability.
While soil amelioration was a key focus of the tour, one of the strongest themes to emerge was the decision-making behind each farming system. Rather than looking for practices to simply replicate at home, participants were encouraged to understand why growers had made particular investments, what problems they were trying to solve and how their farming systems had evolved over time.
Across the grower visits there was no single approach to improvement. Each business had identified the constraints and opportunities most relevant to their own farming system and invested accordingly. A key takeaway was the value of identifying the areas where incremental improvements can be made within your own business, rather than comparing farming systems or attempting to adopt every new technology or practice.
The openness of the growers visited was another feature of the week, with hosts generously sharing both successes and challenges. This created an environment where participants could ask questions, challenge ideas and consider how different approaches might translate to their own farming businesses.
The tour also provided valuable opportunities for grower-to-grower learning. An afternoon with the Yuna Farm Improvement Group brought Victorian and Western Australian growers together to compare farming systems, seasonal conditions and shared challenges. These conversations continued throughout the week, creating genuine two-way knowledge exchange and new connections between regions.
A recurring theme throughout the tour was the long-term approach WA growers have taken to investing in their soils and farming systems.
Local participant Bill Lee said one of his biggest takeaways from the tour was the long-term value of investing in soil.
“One of the biggest takeaways was the importance of soil amelioration. While the process is both time consuming and costly, growers consistently demonstrated that the long-term return on investment can be substantial through improved soil productivity and resilience,” Mr Lee said.
The study tour reinforced the value of seeing innovation firsthand and, importantly, understanding the thinking behind it. Participants returned home not necessarily with practices to copy, but with new ideas to consider within their own farming systems and a broader network of growers, researchers and industry contacts to draw on.
The tour also strengthened relationships between BCG and Western Australian growers, grower groups, DPIRD and industry, creating opportunities for continued knowledge sharing between regions.
This study tour was funded by the GRDC.
