• Coronavirus (COVID-19)
• Supporting Mallee farmers to profit from pulses
• Preventing fatigue during harvest
• Farm Business Resilience Program - registrations closing 12 October
• Act now to prevent a serrated tussock seed storm
• Business support to drive agriculture industry recovery
• Molka farmer convicted of multiple animal cruelty charges
• Getting our lost pets home sooner
• Wild dog management a template for feral cat and foxes
• Fox and wild dog bounty collections
• National feral pig action plan stakeholder forum
• Campfire – Connecting farmers to prevent workplace mental health risks
• Learn at your pace with Agriculture Victoria
• AgVic Talk podcast series
• What's on?

Update

Restrictions are currently in place across metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria.

Keep up to date with all the latest restrictions, permits and requirements at coronavirus.vic.gov.au.

Victorian Travel Permits

Victoria has a permit system for all domestic travel into Victoria.

The travel permit system is a traffic light system that designates areas across Australia and New Zealand as green, orange, red zones or extreme risk zones according to their public health risk.

Specified worker permits are available to eligible workers who need to enter Victoria from other states.

For information about Victoria’s travel permit system, transiting through other zones to get to Victoria and restrictions on entering from other states, including exceptions and exemptions, visit coronavirus.vic.gov.au.

For up-to-date information on travel restrictions for your state, see Travel updates.

For advice specific to Victorian, NSW and SA cross-border communities in a border bubble with Victoria, see Cross-border communities updates.

Keep up to date with all the latest restrictions and requirements at coronavirus.vic.gov.au.

Do you have a plan for how your animals will be looked after if you are required to self-isolate?

Will you have enough feed, animal health products and other supplies?

Animal owners have an obligation to ensure their pets or livestock are properly cared for at all times.

If you are required to self-isolate you should arrange for someone else to care for livestock and make sure the person you will be trusting to look after your animals is willing to take on this responsibility.

Protect your animals and farm business by ensuring you are up to date with COVID-19 restrictions and your farm has an up-to-date COVIDSafe plan.

Find information on implementing the six principles of COVIDSafe workplaces online and keep up to date with all the latest restrictions, permits and requirements at coronavirus.vic.gov.au.

PHOTO: Agriculture Victoria researchers Mitchell Fromm and Audrey Delahunty

Victorian-led research in the state’s north west is helping to boost the production of pulses by testing new varieties and harnessing cutting-edge technology, capitalising on a growing domestic and global market.

Minister for Agriculture Mary-Anne Thomas commended researchers at Agriculture Victoria, in partnership with the Grains Research and Development Corporation who are supporting growers in the Mallee to expand their crop rotations to include fit-for-purpose pulse crops.

Field research sites have been set up in the Mallee, including one at Sea Lake, which enables researchers to test the performance of pulse types so that breeders can target traits to develop new plant varieties that will withstand dry conditions, thrive in local soil types and be more resistant to pests and disease.

These trials have already uncovered two pea varieties, PBA Noosa and PBA Taylor, which are adaptable to most pea growing regions in Australia and commercially suitable for both export and domestic markets.

Large-scale field trials in the northern Mallee have also been established, including a Southern Pulse Agronomy field site at Kooloonong.

Scientists are investigating how pulses can be grown in marginal areas to increase farm profitability and export earnings for Victoria’s growers.

In Horsham, researchers at Agriculture Victoria’s Smartfarm are investigating how sensor technologies can be used to measure grain quality in lentils and faba beans – supporting growers to target premium markets.

In 2019-20, Victoria produced 550,000 tonnes of pulses, with exports valued at $370 million and representing 33 per cent of Victoria’s grain exports.

With worldwide population growth and increased demand for plant protein, global pulse production is projected to increase by 23 per cent by 2030.

Health-conscious consumers have contributed significantly to the demand for pulses due to their high protein and nutritional content.

The Victorian Government is backing an even stronger agriculture sector through its 10-year Agriculture Strategy, ensuring the industry is well-placed to manage climate risk by increasing adoption of new, effective and fit-forpurpose technology.

For more information go to the Agriculture Victoria website agriculture.vic.gov.au.

PHOTO: Simon Craig, Kooloonong grain and sheep farmer

With the busy harvest approaching, we’re sharing farmer tips to help your farm planning and setting up for a safe and successful season.

For Simon Craig, Farm Manager at Lemac Farm, long hours during sowing and harvest are the most dangerous times when workers can get fatigued.

To reduce the risk of fatigue, Simon’s team try different things including auto-steer for tractors, managing hours spent on the machinery and accommodation options if workers are too tired to drive home.

More about fatigue, tips for avoiding it and more go online to the WorkSafe website.

You can watch Simon in a short video speaking about fatigue on-farm.

Agriculture Victoria is offering an exciting new online program for Victorian livestock, grain and mixed farmers.

The Farm Business Resilience Program, which is part of the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund, will provide farmers with the opportunity to develop or refresh their Farm Business Plan.

Topics covered in the program include:

• Identifying and managing emerging risks
• Business planning and financial management
• Succession planning and people management
• AgTech and Internet of Things (IoT)
• Seasonal outlooks, managing soils and farm water for the future.

Participants will also be able to access a Farm Business Resilience Resource Library during and after the program, including program worksheets, presentation materials, videos, podcasts, eLearns and useful websites.

To register your interest in participating in the online program, please complete this short survey.

For more information, contact Kit Duncan-Jones on 0427 749 466 or kit.duncan-jones@agriculture.vic.gov.au

The Farm Business Resilience program is jointly funded by the Australian Government and Victorian Government through the Future Drought Fund.

Further information about the program and the Future Drought Fund can also be found on the Agriculture Victoria website.

Landholders are encouraged to carry out serrated tussock control now to prevent a seed storm impacting agricultural and residential properties in the region.

Serrated tussock is regarded as one of the worst weeds in Australia because of its invasiveness, potential for spread, and economic and environmental impacts.

It can spread rapidly across urban areas causing significant disruption to neighbouring residential areas when large amounts of seed blow across the landscape.

Leading Biosecurity Officer Drew Bateman said the window for land managers to undertake serrated tussock control and prevent a seed storm event is now.

"Under the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994, all land managers have a responsibility to prevent the growth and spread of serrated tussock," Mr Bateman said.

Serrated tussock is a prolific seeder and flowering stems containing seed may be blown up to several kilometres. The stems emerge from August and take eight to 10 weeks for seed to mature.

Flowering stems can build up against housing, sheds, roadsides and fence-lines causing significant disruption and clean up
requirements.

Control measures include the application of a registered herbicide, soil cultivation or the removal of the entire weed from the soil. Depending on the chemical used it can take several weeks after application for it to take effect.

Implementing control measures now can minimise seed set, reducing the likelihood of the weed spreading.

Mr Bateman said land managers could obtain control advice on the Agriculture Victoria website or by speaking to a Biosecurity Officer by contacting the Customer Contact Centre on 136 186.

The Victorian Government is fast-tracking the road to recovery for agriculture and food supply chain businesses in rural and regional Victoria.

Minister for Agriculture Mary-Anne Thomas has announced a new $5.2 million Agriculture Resilience and Recovery Program while visiting Mt William Advanced Tree Nursery in Lancefield.

The nursery received $35,000 last year as part of the Government’s Agriculture Workforce Plan - Business Adaptation program.

The grant enabled the nursery to build a portable lunchroom and expand the existing lunchroom to provide suitable space for workers.

Prior to this, staff were forced to split shifts, restrict work days, rotate lunch breaks and work across multiple sites.

The new program provides grants of between $10,000 and $300,000 to support on-farm infrastructure, business upgrades and new facilities to enable businesses to adapt their operations to COVIDSafe settings.

The program provides three types of business support:

• Business Resilience and Recovery – to support businesses to adapt their operations to maintain production and manage risks.
• Place-based Worker Support – to support the development of COVIDSafe worker accommodation.
• Training and Education –  to provide support for farm and food processing workers to access information and services and ensure businesses are providing COVIDSafe work practices.

The grants will provide support for businesses as they prepare for upcoming peak seasons including spring shearing, grains harvest and meat processing, and horticulture’s peak picking and packing season.

The Agriculture Resilience and Recovery Program is part of the government’s comprehensive $84 million support package to assist industry to address workforce challenges brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.

More than $30 million has been provided through the Agriculture Workforce Plan, which has awarded more than 380 grants to assist businesses to create COVIDSafe workplaces, provide worker induction and training, and create additional accommodation and transport facilities.

Businesses have been supported to build COVIDSafe lunchrooms, kitchens, washrooms and other worker amenities, make modifications to processing, packaging and manufacturing lines, create automated entry points, build partitions for workspaces and install temperature checking facilities.

For more information visit agriculture.vic.gov.au.

Molka farmer, Anthony Gleeson, was sentenced for multiple animal cruelty and aggravated cruelty charges, in the Shepparton Magistrates Court on Wednesday, 29 September.

Following a four-day contested hearing, Anthony Gleeson was convicted and fined $50,000 plus costs to the department of $26,384.41.

The Magistrate also imposed a 15-month Community Corrections Order to perform 150 hours of unpaid community work and issued a conditional order for five years requiring Mr Gleeson to ensure the wellbeing of his livestock, to be monitored periodically by Agriculture Victoria.

Mr Gleeson was found guilty of 26 charges of aggravated cruelty relating to 26 seriously disabled sheep on his property in 2019. In some instances sheep were stuck in mud around dams while trying to get to water and predated whilst alive by crows.

Mr Gleeson was also found guilty of two additional charges of cruelty related to a flock of approximately 750 sheep that did not have safe access to drinking water and suffered unreasonable pain and suffering as a result of Mr Gleeson failing to provide proper supervision.

Agriculture Victoria Compliance Manager Daniel Bode said the sheep were not being provided with safe access to water, along with inadequate supervision, leaving our officers no alternative but to euthanise numerous animals.

The Magistrate noted animal welfare must be the cornerstone of a commercial business and drought cannot be relied upon as an excuse, as there is no excuse for what those animals endured.

The Magistrate further remarked this offending led to the serious disablement of animals that had to be euthanised. Knowing that sheep are herd animals, it was distressing to see the sheep in those situations, unable to extract themselves from the mud.

His Honour also added the sheep were left to predatory behaviour while alive, and vulnerable to the elements. Mr Gleeson has at the same time shown no remorse or acceptance of his responsibility.

Mr Bode said apart from the obvious pain and suffering of the animals, animal welfare breaches can jeopardise Victoria’s reputation as a humane and responsible producer of food, which can affect all producers.

“This is a reminder to all livestock producers that animal cruelty will not be tolerated by the Victorian Government or the community.”

Anyone wishing to make a specific complaint in regard to livestock welfare can contact Agriculture Victoria on 136 186 or aw.complaint@agriculture.vic.gov.au

The Victorian Government is delivering on its election commitment to make sure lost pets get returned home sooner, with legislation to be introduced in Parliament this week.

The change means Victorians will soon be able to take a lost dog or cat to a participating vet clinic or registered animal shelter to be reunited with its owner, rather than relying on councils.

At present, lost cats and dogs must be handed in to an authorised officer in the council area where the animal is found, or to vets and shelters that have an agreement under the Domestic Animals Act 1994.

Surveys show just 23 per cent of vets have a contract with council to accept lost pets and as a result many animals are spending longer in pound and shelter facilities. The proposed reforms will:

• allow shelters and participating vets to accept and reunite lost pets directly with their owners, with simple record keeping and reporting requirements
• improve animal welfare by ensuring lost pets get home as quickly as possible
• reduce burden on local councils, by allowing vets and shelters to assist with direct reunification services
• improve operations for regulatory authorities, including the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) Victoria and Greyhound Racing Victoria.

The Domestic Animals Amendment (Reuniting Pets and Other Matters) Bill 2021 includes a robust verification process to ensure pets are returned to the correct owner.

It also identifies circumstances where pets should go to the council to protect public safety and animal welfare. This includes situations where an animal is declared dangerous, or ownership cannot be verified.

These reforms are important as Victoria has high pet ownership rates, with an average of 665,000 dogs and 215,000 cats registered with councils each year.

Extensive consultation with community and stakeholders including veterinarians, councils, shelters, animal registry (microchip) services, rescue groups and community foster care networks was an important part of the process that led to the final form of the legislation.

The new arrangements will be in effect by 1 October 2022.

For more information visit agriculture.vic.gov.au.

PHOTO: National Feral Cat and Fox Management Coordinator Gillian Basnett joins a network of national vertebrate pest coordinators covering wild dogs, deer and feral pigs

Strategies proven under the National Wild Dog Action Plan are set to help work undertaken by the new National Feral Cat and Fox Management Coordinator.

Environmental scientist and ecologist Gillian Basnett, of Launceston, Tasmania, has been appointed to the new role with the Centre for Invasive Species Solutions, funded by the Australian Government as part of the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment’s Regional Bushfire Fund.

Gillian specialises in fire ecology, wildlife management and community engagement, environmental education and science communication.

She has worked with many landholder, community and student groups, agencies and not-for-profit organisations across Australia.

Ms Basnett said the standard operational procedures and best practice guidelines established by NWDAP would be used as a model.

“The National Wild Dog Action Plan will be really useful as a template for landscape scale, cross-tenure, coordinated, collaborative, community driven feral predator management,” she said.

“Key learnings of what has worked and what hasn’t will help with planning and engagement particularly for fox control.”

The National Feral Cat and Fox Management Coordinator role joins a network of national vertebrate pest coordinators covering wild dogs, deer and feral pigs.

“As national coordinators with a focus on individual species, we can provide specific information on our pest species that is relevant to landholders, groups, projects, planning and legislation,” Ms Basnett said.

“This is important but we also recognise in most, if not all, landscapes there are multiple threats and pests, often interacting and needing to be managed together to have the desired outcome.

“By having the four coordinators, who work closely together, we can be both targeted in our approach and provide best practice management information, and access to a wider range of networks and partnerships across multiple species.”

Ms Basnett will initially focus on seven priority bushfire-affected regions ranging along the east coast from South-East Queensland to East Gippsland and Kangaroo Island, as well as priority threatened species.

She will be reaching out to landholders, Landcare, and others to help them with community led approaches that mitigate the impact of feral cats and foxes in their local areas.

More broadly, Gillian will be coordinating action and best practice management approaches to control feral cats and foxes nationally.

She will serve on the National Feral Cat Taskforce, chaired by the Threatened Species Commissioner, meaning local action will connect with national action, and build on the feral cat work already being undertaken.

“We all watched in horror as huge bushfires burnt through large areas of Australia in the summer of 2019-20,” she said.

“It has been estimated three billion native animals were killed or displaced during these fires. As areas start to regenerate, our wildlife has a chance to recover.

“But cats and foxes will significantly hamper this recovery through increased predation of wildlife sheltering in small areas of unburnt vegetation and more efficient hunting in recovering, but exposed habitats.

“In order to protect the surviving wildlife and help with recovery, it is vital we manage introduced predators effectively and coordinate efforts across the landscape, and I look forward to working with others to help make this happen.”

Victorian Fox and Wild Dog Bounty resumed in the majority of regional Victoria on 14 September 2021.

If you are attending a collection centre, you must comply with COVIDSafe principles including using the QR code to check-in, physical distancing, good hygiene practices and wearing a face mask indoors and outdoors (unless you have a lawful reason not to).

Please continue to check the Victorian fox and wild dog bounty webpage on the Agriculture Victoria website for the latest information, as the collection schedule is subject to change in response to the COVID-19 situation.

Collection schedule for South West Victoria

Ballarat collections (Fox only), 25 Vickers St, Sebastopol, 1 – 3 pm

Dates:

• Monday, 18 October

Colac collections (Fox only) ox only, 23A Hugh Murray Drive, Colac East 3250, 1.30 – 3.30 pm

Dates:

• Tuesday, 19 October

Hamilton collections (Fox only), Depot, Hamilton Centre, Research Station Road, 1.30 – 3.30 pm

Dates:

• Wednesday, 20 October

This forum will focus on feral pig management planning and practical measures to optimise outcomes from your management activities.

Our next NFPAP Stakeholder Forum will be held on Monday 11 October from 1 – 2.30 pm.

It will be chaired by Ricky Archer, CEO, NAILSMA and Chair of the NFPAP’s Implementation Committee. A progress update on the Plan’s implementation will be presented by Dr Heather Channon.

This forum will focus on feral pig management planning and practical measures to consider to optimise outcomes from your best practice management activities.

Presentations will be made by Troy Crittle, Invasive Species Officer, NSW DPI and Stu Barker, from Wild Science in NT, who will discuss the application of effective integrated, best practice management of feral pigs in different regions around Australia.

For more information or to register go online to the eventbrite website.

The National Centre for Farmer Health are excited that the innovative and exciting new chat-based platform ‘Campfire’ has now been up and running for three months.

During this time they have engaged with over 100 registered participants across a wide range of agricultural industries in Victoria, and reaching many more primary producers through our blogs, podcasts and social media messaging.

Campfire brings farmers together in a relaxed environment where people with shared interests can get together, listen to experts and peers, ask questions and pose solutions.

It helps farmers to improve their systems of work in order to better manage the demands and challenges of primary production, and to develop mentally healthy workplaces for farm owners, managers, workers and their families.

Bonfire events have attracted the most participation so far. These are held fortnightly on the Campfire platform on Wednesday evenings (from 7.30 pm) where farmers can hear from topic experts and participate in live Q&A.

The audience will soon be able to submit questions ahead of time, to be answered by our experts on the night. Keep your eye on the NCFH Facebook and Instagram pages about how to lodge your questions in advance or visit the Campfire page to leave your questions.

On alternate Wednesday evenings, farmers can join smaller Campfire Q&A discussions on work-related challenges relevant to them, including the topic of the previous week’s Bonfire.

The Farmer Health Campfire webpage is home to resources developed around the topics tackled so far, including podcasts, blogs and the link to access the Campfire platform. You can view past Bonfire conversations at any time, with current content covering:

• Working effectively in a family business
• Making your business more resilient to environmental extremes
• Strengthening your support team: farming safety consultants
• Strengthening your support team – AgriSafe
• New to farming: learning from experience
• Communication: it's more than words
• Planning for success(ion)
• Strengthening your support team – Rural Financial Counselling Service.

Register today to join the conversation, receive information about upcoming events and access topic blogs and podcasts by clicking here. 

Upcoming bonfire topics:

• 20 October – Strengthening your support team – working dog training school

A selection of online courses can be undertaken at your own pace, at any time and from anywhere with an internet connection is available from Agriculture Victoria.

The Victorian Government understands that life can get busy and it isn’t always possible to attend courses in person. 

eLearning provides an accessible and flexible option for learning and expanding your knowledge. 

It enables you to enhance your skills without having to attend an event or workshop in person which could be a significant distance from home, or difficult to complete due to time constraints.

To access courses, you will need to create an account. This will allow you full access to the courses and it will track your progress as you move through them.

Browse the range of courses that can be undertaken at your own pace, at any time and from anywhere with an internet connection.

This week’s eLearn in profile is: Land Classing Application

The land classing application course provides a step-by-step approach to identifying the land class of a particular area of a farm.

Land classing is a fundamental step in developing a Whole Farm Plan. By identifying areas with similar land and soil types you are better able to make informed decisions on what land use is best suited to a certain area.

This tool is based on the Land Classing Kit For Farmers, a booklet written by Nathalie Baxter and John Williamson in 2000.

The course will assist you to identify the capability or land class of your land in a systematic and logical way using your knowledge of the farm and a few simple assessment techniques.

Fencing and managing your land according to its land class will reduce the risk of degradation and in most cases will increase your farm's production.

View the Land Classing Application online course.

This podcast series delivers knowledge and information in a format that suits the way farmers and agricultural professionals work and live today.

Subscribe to AgVic Talk

You can subscribe and listen to AgVic Talk wherever you get your podcasts:

• Subscribe to AgVic Talk on Spotify
• Subscribe to Apple Podcasts

Your feedback is important to us so make sure to rate and review AgVic Talk episodes and share with your friends and family.

Episodes cover contemporary problems and solutions on how members of the agricultural community recover, grow, modernise, protect, and promote Victorian agriculture.

All information included in these episodes is accurate at the time of release.

Contact Agriculture Victoria on 136 186 or your consultant before making any changes on-farm.

Gippsland sheep farmer and Young Farmers Advisory Council member Nick Blandford firmly believes Australian agriculture can adapt to climate change.

Discover how he is using his knowledge of climate change science to inform his business decisions; ensuring that soil health, emissions and profitability are integrated into his business model.

Listen to Nick’s podcast episode by searching for 'AgVic Talk' wherever you get your podcasts or listen 🎧 online via the AgVic website agriculture.vic.gov.au/AgVicTalk

Share the profits, some of the risk, but none of the capital outlay.  Sounds like a great deal?   It's a farming arrangement called share farming and may be an alternative pathway into the industry for future farmers?

Gippsland dairy farmer Hans van Wees has been share farming near Maffra for 15 years and recently joined the AgVic Talk studio to discuss how having a realistic budget along with realistic ambitions provides for a very reliable income if you approach it in a pragmatic and professional way. 

Listen to Hans’s episode by searching for 'AgVic Talk' wherever you get your podcasts or listen 🎧 online via the AgVic website agriculture.vic.gov.au/AgVicTalk

For young farmers and those new to running a business, deciding to employ staff is a big step.

In the latest AgVic Talk podcast we hear from young farmer Samantha Mitchell (pictured right with dad John) who – with the support of her mentor Andrew Bell – is working towards hiring her first on-farm employee.

Samantha and Andrew are part of the Young Farmer and New Entrant Mentoring Program designed to support and build confidence in young farmers as they learn the ropes.

Hear Andrew reflect on why his 40-year working relationship with his employee has been so successful and how his experience has helped Samantha.

Search for AgVic Talk wherever you get your podcasts or listen 🎧 online via the AgVic website agriculture.vic.gov.au/AgVicTalk

Details about Agriculture Victoria events can now be found in one spot on our website. Log on to agriculture.vic.gov.au/events to find out what's on.

The Department of Jobs Precincts and Regions is holding online information sessions in early October to update locals about minerals exploration west of Ararat.

The sessions will cover several topics including what minerals exploration involves, landholder rights, the safeguards in place and the obligations of exploration companies.

Earth Resources Regulation recently granted Stavely Minerals a minerals exploration licence following the 2018 Stavely Ground Release.

The Victorian-based company will be searching for gold, copper and other minerals in an area 25 kilometres west of Ararat, extending south to Mafeking, Wickliffe, Willaura and Lake Bolac. The area does not include the Grampians National Park.

Stavely Minerals will attend the sessions to outline their activities and there will be opportunities for attendees to ask questions.

Attendees can register for the remaining session tonight at earthresources.vic.gov.au.

• Thursday 7 October, 7 to 8.30 pm

Stavely Minerals expects to spend up to $3 million over five years on exploration and will receive a $480,000 TARGET Minerals Exploration grant to help fund early-stage activities.

Generally, early-stage exploration activities such as mapping, sampling and rock testing, are the first steps in establishing if minerals are present. If development is considered viable, it typically takes many years to progress toward mining, including meeting regulatory controls.

In Victoria, before an explorer can access privately owned land and commence exploration activities, the explorer requires landholder consent.

Land access consent tools are available to aid negotiations between landholders and exploration companies. Templates will help both parties agree on access to private property, biosecurity protocols and managing any impacts on crops, and potential compensation.

These voluntary tools can be tailored for the specific needs and circumstances of the landholder and were developed in consultation with the Victorian Farmers Federation and the exploration industry.

The landholder tools are at earthresources.vic.gov.au/landaccess.

With increasing interest in carbon abatement in agriculture, the CSIRO has developed a landscape options and opportunities for carbon abatement calculator.

In this webinar, LOOC-C team member Dr Stephen Roxburgh will provide an introduction to this tool and explain some of the background to it.

LOOC-C estimates carbon abatement via an emission factor database, giving producers information to assess potential changes to carbon by undertaking various tree or soil carbon activities on their land.

By visiting https://looc-c.farm/ you can use the map interface to select a potential project area and help start the conversation of carbon abatement options for your farm business.

Webinar presenter Dr Stephen Roxburgh is the LOOC-C program leader for the CSIRO.

Stephen is a recognised leader in terrestrial plant ecology and greenhouse gas accounting, with over 20 years' experience in the field measurement and computer modelling of forest growth and carbon cycling. He currently leads the Natural Capital group within CSIRO.

Webinar, Tuesday 12 October, 12 pm (1 hour)

Register online with Zoom.

BOOKINGS: https://www.trybooking.com/BUDMO

For more information, contact: Michael Moodie on 0448 612 892.

Do you buy or sell livestock privately, online or through saleyards?

Do you know the NLIS requirements for livestock movements?

Agriculture Victoria is delivering interactive online training sessions for livestock producers using the National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) database.

There are two events for you to choose from, between October and November.

• Wednesday 27 October, 11 am – 12.30 pm
• Wednesday 24 November, 9 – 10.30 am

Participants will learn about the Victorian traceability system, tour the NLIS database features and learn how to complete a Property-to-Property (P2P) transfer.

Session plan

Part 1: Overview of the Victorian traceability system

• Self-paced online learning (30 minutes)

Part 2: Navigating and using the NLIS database, Zoom meeting (1.5 hours)

• Watch a live demonstration of the NLIS database over a Zoom meeting
• Access the training NLIS database to practise completing Property-to-Property (P2P) transfers
• Question and answer session.

Book your free tickets online via the eventbrite website.

For more information - or if you have trouble registering online - please call 0427 681 714.

Numbers are limited to allow for an interactive session.

Participants are encouraged to set up their NLIS account prior to attending the webinar.

Knowing what assets you have on your property is essential when it comes to managing a major disruption to your business, whether it’s a fire, flood or storms.

It’s impossible to recall everything you have stored in that now burnt down shed.

Agriculture Victoria’s Insuring Farm Assets webinar will discuss the importance of asset inventories, and the things you need to consider when it comes to insuring fences, fodder and stock.

One of the big issues in making insurance decisions and claims is having an accurate inventory list and an understanding of its true value.

Not only is this information useful for preparing insurance decision and claims, it’s also particularly helpful for annual tax returns.

PRESENTER

Michael Myers (Adroit Insurance and Risk) – Michael has 35 years’ experience in the insurance industry and provides insights on how to approach insurance, what you need and what your insurance will cover. 

TOPICS to be discussed:

• The importance of asset inventories
• Creating simple and easy asset inventories
• How to get your farm fence insurance right
• How to insure your cattle and fodder reserves
• What is ‘self-insured’ and what are the implications for your business.

Date:     Tuesday, 19 October
Time:    7.30– 8.30pm
Cost:    Free
RSVP:   Register for this online webinar by 5 pm,
              Tuesday 19 October via eventbrite.

Contact: Paul Simpson, Agriculture Recovery Extension Officer on 0455 750 605 or paul.simpson@agriculture.vic.gov.au

These webinars with seasonal risk agronomist Dale Grey, will focus on the current seasonal climate outlook for Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and southern New South Wales.

The outlook will be based on model projections for rainfall using current oceanic, atmospheric and soil moisture conditions.
These webinars are simply online presentations during which you can ask questions.

They will be recorded, so if you miss the live presentation you can watch it later at a time that suits you.

Please share this invite with your colleagues.

Date and time: Wednesday 20 October at 12 noon AEST
Event number: 811 3124 5098
Password: 425769

Register online via the Zoom platform.

To join a webinar you’ll need access to a computer that has a good internet connection and a headset or built-in computer speakers and microphone.

You can also watch via computer and phone in (if you can’t access audio on your computer) or you can watch and interact in the webinar via your smartphone or tablet.

For more information about this webinar, email the.break@agriculture.vic.gov.au

PODCASTS

Fungicide resistance podcast provides regional insights for southern growers

Past seasons have already seen several local examples of fungicide failure from Tasmania to the far west of South Australia, generally linked to a lack of crop and fungicide rotations.

In this podcast, Dr Hugh Wallwork talks about the factors that contribute to fungicide resistance and how fungicide management needs to begin with variety and seed treatment selection before sowing.

Plant available water capacity

In this podcast, many factors affect how much stored soil water is available, including rainfall before and during the growing season, infiltration, evaporation and transpiration. And then there’s plant available water capacity, which is the total amount of water a soil can store and release to a crop, which differs depending on the crop.

Grants are available to support cattle, sheep, goat, swine and honey bee industries through the Livestock Biosecurity Funds – Grant Program.

The grants program, now open for applications, has been developed collaboratively between Agriculture Victoria and the livestock compensation advisory committees.

Funded projects from last year include the Victorian Farmers Federation’s producer-led biosecurity extension program for cattle, sheep and goats, the Livestock Saleyards Association of Victoria’s ‘Managing Transit Stock in Saleyards’ project, and HiveKeepers’ ‘Smart Sentinel Beehives Pilot Program’.

Other projects previously funded include the National Livestock Identification System tag subsidy for both sheep and cattle, Significant Disease Investigation programs, animal disease investigation courses, abattoir-based pig health surveillance, and prevention of anthrax.

Applications are invited from private sector businesses, universities and research institutions, co-operatives, government agencies and local government, and incorporated associations.

Any organisation looking to apply should consider the guidelines and eligibility criteria, review the relevant Statement of Strategic Intent, and complete the online application form.

The grants are made possible through funds established under the Livestock Disease Control Act, which enable the collection of duties generated by the sale of cattle, sheep, goat and pigs and their carcasses in Victoria, and the registration fees for beekeepers.

Applications are now open and will close 11:59 pm on Friday 26 November.

More information is available on the Agriculture Victoria website or call the Customer Contact Centre on 136 186.

The Storm and Flood Recovery Hotline is a single state-wide number that Victorians impacted by the June 2021 storms and floods can call for help or assistance.

Operators can assist you with registering for Clean-Up of structures on private property or accessing your own Recovery Support Worker, mental health and wellbeing support, financial counselling and information on available payments.

The Recovery Hotline is open from 8 am to 7 pm Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays) and 9 am to 1 pm on weekends.

The Partners in Wellbeing Helpline offers free and confidential one-on-one access to wellbeing coaches, financial counsellors and business advisors.

Small business owners can call the Partners in Wellbeing Helpline on 1300 375 330 seven days a week.

Alternately, a live chat function is available on https://www.partnersinwellbeing.org.au/small-business-support

Wellbeing coaches are available from 9am to 10pm on weekdays and from 9am to 5pm on weekends.

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