Country Hour Tasmania

A warning from an investment consultant that there needs to be a vast improvement in the Tasmanian Freight chain if investors are going to put their money into Tasmanian Agriculture. Co-founder of Think China Benjamin Sun has told a China Australian Business Council gathering the numbers of Tasmanian producers looking to market their produce in Asia is increasing rapidly. The second rooster round-up will happen this Sunday in Southern Tasmania after a successful initial round-up last year,...

A CSIRO study has blamed climate change for a flat lining in the yields of wheat grown at 50 locations across the Country. In 2016 lamb exports out of Tasmania halved on the previous year, while beef shipped out dropped by 2,052 tonnes, reflecting the dry season. The TIA dairy research institute have trialled feeding calves in different ways in the first 50 days of life to see if they can grow faster. Five Bothwell farmers have all purchased fully equipped fire engines at an auction, and...

To celebrate International Women's Day Laurissa Smith and Margot Kelly bring you the Tasmanian Country Hour today. Former Rural Woman of the Year in Tasmanian Annette Reid told her story about life in agriculture and the role women play. Blazeaid champion Mary Howarth talked about the role the organisation plays when natural disasters strike. Richard Bailey reminisces about his mum home schooling him for a time on the farm.

ABARES is predicting the overall value of Australian agricultural production will hit a record yet again this year, peaking at $63.8 Billion. Hop Product Australia's Bushy Park facility is a hive of activity with 255 hectares of hops to be harvested, nearly 30 hectares more than the 2016 harvest. The export dairy cattle trade is starting to crank up after a sluggish 18 months and five exporters are chasing heifers in the key dairy states to fill orders, mainly for China. Jim and Denise...

Around 250 people attended a meeting in Triabunna yesterday to discuss Tassal's plan to farm an area of Okehampton Bay. The meeting called for Primary Industries Minister Jeremy Rockliff to change his stance on approving the project and push it out to sea. The CSIRO has launched a four year program in a concerted effort to see more trees grown on Tasmanian farms. Beef breeders Denise and Jim Rossiter arrived in Tasmania 34 years ago, wound up staying and now raise organic Angus cattle on...

Environmental activists say exotic pests and diseases, that don't affect agriculture, get little planning and not much money to control them ,and they say the answer is a Chief of Environment Biosecurity. Former head of Forestry Tasmania and Taa Ann Evan Rolley has been announced as the new CEO of the 25 dairy farm strong business VDL now owned by Moonlake Investments. The Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture is part of a nation-wide project looking at the opportunities of virtual GPS based...

The Port of Melbourne's new chief has re-assured its Tasmanian customers, further investment in the port's infrastructure is on the cards. Tasmanian's port authority is working on its own investment strategy for its four major ports, Hobart, Bell Bay, Burnie and Devonport. The Managing Director of Fonterra Australia says the dairy giant is looking at creating a Tasmanian branded cheese for the Japanese market. The man behind the Hamilton Show rocks, John Shoobridge, says he will continue...

The board of listed Tasmanian infant formula manufacturer Bellamys has undergone a major shakeup much to the delight of Tasmanian businesswoman Jan Cameron. The Managing Director of Dairy Australia says their program Tactics for Tight Times has directly helped 900 dairy farmers across Australia. After arriving in Devonport to much fanfare in December last year the freight ship Searoad Mersey two is now out of action until the end of March. The farm homestead where colonial painter John...

Australian Wool Innovation has come under scrutiny at a Senate Estimates hearing over an ex gratia payment of $97,000 to a worker who was made redundant. Both AWI and Dairy Australia told the hearings in Canberra that they had no intention of relocating to regional areas from the city. An on line auction of 1 thousand megalitres of water at the Meander Valley has failed to gain a bid as negotiations over the sale continue. A north west timber mill is looking at turning eucalyptus nitens...

Murray Goulburn suppliers want to see a clear plan to recovery laid out by the co-op after a loss of almost $32 million. A group of interstate farmers, food entrepreneurs and educators are trekking across Tasmania this week, raising much-needed funds for Landcare. Mining company MMG is spending $30 million on expanding the current tailings dam in Rosebery, to improve environmental outcomes. 56 young Tasmanians spent their weekend full of nerves and excitement at the Deloraine showgrounds...

Tasmania's largest meat processor says it's struggling to find enough lamb to process in the state forcing it to suspend lamb operations at its Longford plant. 130 workers at the plant will be stood down for at least the next month when JBS Swift says it will see how the lamb market is going. The ASX-listed Murray Goulburn dairy co-op has revealed a $31.9 million dollar loss in its half-year results, thanks to plummeting milk supplies. Cressy wool handler Mel Morris will return to New...

Dairy Australia's latest Situation and Outlook report shows farmers facing tough times are producing less milk, but Australians are drinking more label milk. The head of produce at Woolworths believes the supermarket is getting the balance right to keep both producers and consumers happy. A number of beef producers in southern Tasmania are meeting with meat processor in Brighton today and the big topic of conversation is the price of meat. Differing views on whether bumble bees should be...

Farmers and researchers say Australia's biosecurity systems are failing due to cutbacks by state and federal governments. Livestock transport operators say they're dumping effluent in public spaces, risking the environment and biosecurity, because they have no other options. The Tasmanian Government will spend the next six months formalising a plan for the future of the salmon industry in the state. The future of Rural Alive and Well in Tasmania is under a cloud because of funding changes...

Biosecurity Tasmania wants to reassure the states vegetable growers stringent biosecurity measures against the Tomato and Potato Psyllid are already in place. A third international shipping service operated by container giant Mearsk Line has a commenced weekly service to and from Tasmania. Researchers are hoping to find a new way to prevent the theft of stock , a crime which costs the industry millions of dollars every year. The latest lamb sale at Powranna in Tasmania's north has seen...

The parent company pf Cadbury will close the Dunedin manufacturing plant in New Zealand to concentrate on Australian production. The move could lead to an escalation of production at the Claremont plant in southern Tasmania and the need for more milk from suppliers. Strahan residents have met to discuss the Aquaculture Stewardship Council certification for Tassal in Macquarie Harbour. Proponents behind a $20 million international container terminal at Burnie are meeting with Tas Ports this...

Ruralco has announced a new suite of acquisitions, including Irrigation Tasmania, Mildura Irrigation Centre and River Rain in South Australia. Potato farmers in Tasmania have been asked to remain vigilant after the first ever incursion of tomato and potato psyllid into Australia. Some farmers in the state's north west say they have not been adequately consulted about Tasmanian irrigation infrastructure being built on their private land. The state government has approved a mining lease for...

For the first time the tomato and potato psyllid pest has been found in Australia in several backyards in Perth and a commercial farm outside Perth. The pest cost the new Zealand potato industry hundreds of millions of dollars and an investigation is underway into how the incursion happened. Mining company MMG Limited say they are confident they can extend the life of the Roseberry mine until at least 2030. The Rupertswood farm at Hagley has unveiled its annual maze, this time in a maize...

The latest irrigation scheme in Tasmania involving the Duck River has been officially launched by Primary Industries Minister Jeremy Rockliff. The scheme will initially assist 26 farmers in the Circular Head area delivering 5,200 megalitres of water in a traditionally wet area of the state. Researchers have found two genetically different types of snapper in waters off the east coast of Australia, one found north of Eden, the other south. And the Launceston Harvest Market has passed a...

Apple growers across Australia are gearing up for a competitive year out there in the market place following ideal conditions earlier on in the season. Western Australia's growers in particular are dealing with almost too good of a season, with some having to drop tens of thousands of maturing apples in the lead up to harvest. The industrial hemp industry is gearing up for some serious growth, if Australian and New Zealand regulators approve a proposal for hemp seed to be used in...