Attempting to forecast how Australian agriculture will fare in 2017 is an exercise fraught with risk, but it’s probably fair to assume that for most involved in the sector, 2017 will not be as good as 2016. Very favourable seasonal conditions combined with high livestock prices meant that the gross value of agricultural production will exceed $60 billion in 2016, about 16% higher than the average figure for the preceding five years,according to ABARES. View the rest of the post here

The recent running of the Melbourne Cup provided an opportunity to compare the productivity gains by the thoroughbred racing industry and the Australian farm sector. By using improvements in the time of the winning horse as a proxy for productivity gains by the thoroughbred industry, and the recently published national agricultural productivity growth figures for Australia published by the US Department of Agriculture an interesting comparison can be made. Which sector do you think has enjoyed the greatest 'productivity growth'? View the rest of the post here

The average Australian farmer now manages a business with an asset value of close to five million dollars, and is now spending an increasing amount of time managing staff and talking to technical advisors, rather than actually doing all the physical work on the farm. These two changes have significant implications when considering what skills the 'average' farmer will need in the future, and how new farmers will get a start in the sector. View the rest of the post here

In the wake of the decision by the United Kingdom to leave the European Union, there has been some speculation that the move will create opportunities for Australia, and that serious efforts should be made to negotiate a free trade deal between the UK and Australia. From the perspective of Australian agriculture, the proposal makes little sense and there appears to be much bigger trade opportunities much closer to home that need pursuing. View the rest of the post here

The farm sector is one of the major beneficiaries of the Australian Government's Emission Reduction Fund auction process, and the annual revenue being generated by landholders continues to grow - seemingly under the radar. While there is some uncertainty about what might happen when funds currently allocated to this process have been all utilised, there is no doubt that it has created new opportunities for many landholders who will continue to reap the benefits for years to come. View the rest of the post here

Debates in Australia about land clearing are seemingly unending, in part due to the failure of many involved to recognise some basic truths, and in part due to the very significant divide between media reports about the issue, and what the available statistics actually say about land clearing rates. View the rest of the post here

One of the most interesting responses to the recent dramatic and retrospective price reductions in the dairy sector has been the disbelief expressed by senior executives in sectors such as banking, manufacturing, transport and IT about the extent to which major processors in the dairy sector can simply put all the price risk onto dairy farmers, and even retrospectively change the price those farmers are paid. View the rest of the post here

The latest beef import data for China shows that both Brazil and Uruguay have now moved ahead of Australia as exporters of beef to China. This is a statistic that highlights the smug complacency that some  Australian farmers and policymakers had about the 'inevitability' of Australia securing a major share of booming Asian food imports needs to be urgently cast aside, and some more serious thought given to how Australian agriculture can maximise the benefits available from the Asian food boom, given limited production capacity. View the rest of the post here