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In this edition
What's On
Ag Recovery Support
What's New
Beef and Sheep News
Best Wool / Best Lamb
Better Beef
Quick Links
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PLEASE NOTE: The events listed below may be subject to last minute cancellation in the event of an emergency or advice from Victoria’s Chief Health Officer.
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Webinar Details
Repairing erosion damage to roads, tracks, stream crossings and dams
When: Thursday 1 December
Where: Online via Zoom
Time: 1 – 2 pm
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Repairing flood erosion damage webinar
Join Agriculture Victoria's Clem Sturmfels as he discusses repairing erosion damage after floods.
This webinar will cover techniques for repairing the damage caused by heavy rain and flooding over recent months, as well as a few design tips to make them cope better in the next event. Topics include: road design and drainage, repair of stream crossings, repair dam spillways and repair failed dams.
Register for this free webinar
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Event Details
VFF Safe recovery of bogged machinery
When: Wednesday 30 November
Where: 790 Derby-Serpentine Road, Bridgewater
Time: 9 am – 12 pm
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VFF Safe recovery of bogged machinery information session
Farmers, farm employees and farm machinery operators are invited to a safe recovery of bogged machinery information session.
Demonstration and discussion with: VFF making our farms safer, black snake recovery strops, National Centre for Farmer Health and WorkSafe Victoria.
Register for this free event
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Webinar Details
Feet concerns for the wet season ahead
When: Thursday 1 December
Where: Online via GoTo
Time: 1 – 2 pm
Are your bugs bogging you down?
When: Thursday 8 December
Where: Online via GoTo
Time: 1 – 2 pm
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Sheep Connect webinars
In the last two webinars of this current series, Dr Om Dhungyel from Sydney University, tackles the challenges the current wet season is bringing to our sheep's feet and Dr Matt Playford explores what bugs might be headed your way due to the wet weather and the effects they could have on our flocks.
Register for the free webinar online at Sheep Connect
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Flood recovery webinars
Agriculture Victoria recently held a series of free webinars on flood recovery, featuring techincal specialists on the following topics:
Flood recovery: Control and repair of paddock-based erosion - with Clem Sturmfels, Agriculture Victoria
Flood recovery: Biosecurity planning after floods - with Kate McCue, Agriculture Victoria
Flood recovery: Feed budgeting - with Fiona Baker, Agriculture Victoria
Flood recovery: Animal health - with Dr Rachel Gibney, Agriculture Victoria
Cash flow budgeting - with Carmen Quade, AgriFocused, Passcode: CASHFLOW
Listen to the webinar recordings, using the passcode: Livestock
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| FLOOD RELIEF AND RECOVERY INFORMATION |
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Agriculture Victoria is working with producers and industry in response to the current flood situation across areas of Victoria.
An important part of our role in emergencies includes appropriately responding to reports of urgent animal welfare issues and assessing agricultural losses and damage as a result of the floods, as this will inform the type of support required by producers both immediately and over the medium to long-term.
Agriculture Victoria is contacting landholders affected by the floods to assess loss and damage and to understand their needs as they manage the recovery process.
Producers are encouraged to get in contact with Agriculture Victoria if they have horticultural, livestock, crops or other agricultural loss, damage or issues resulting from the recent floods.
Telephone: 1800 226 226
Email: recovery@agriculture.vic.gov.au
Website: agriculture.vic.gov.au/floods
Urgent animal health concerns – injury, loss or disease?
Anyone with urgent animal welfare issues should contact us through 1800 226 226.
A support package is available for flood-affected farmers
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Primary Producer Clean-Up Relief Grants: Up to $75,000 grants to cover the cost of the clean-up and get businesses up and running again.
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Rural Landholder Grants: Up to $25,000 grants to cover the costs of disaster impacts for small-scale producers.
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Primary Producer Concessional Loans: Up to $250,000 to restore or replace damaged equipment and infrastructure, or to cover the short-term business expenses.
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Primary Producer Transport Subsidies: Up to $15,000 to support the transport of emergency fodder or stock drinking water, and the movement of livestock.
Visit the Rural Finance website to read more and apply.
Rural Financial Counselling Service
The Rural Financial Counselling Service provides free financial counselling to agricultural industries and small rural businesses.
For more information visit the National Emergency Management Agency website.
Sewage and livestock
Animal owners should avoid livestock having any contact with sewage contaminated water or areas where sewage contamination has occurred.
Cattle and pigs that come into contact with untreated sewage can develop parasitic infections caused by the human tapeworms Taenia solium andTaenia saginata respectively.
The infection of Taenia saginata in cattle is called Cysticercus bovis (‘beef measles’) and is notifiable in Victoria. For more information head to our Notifiable diseases webpage.
If sewage contamination is suspected on your property notify Agriculture Victoria on 1800 226 226.
Recovery services that Agriculture Victoria provides
Agriculture Victoria can offer technical advice on:
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pasture recovery and grazing management
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soil erosion management
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animal health, nutrition, and feed budgeting
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whole farm planning
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water quality and water budgeting
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farm water reticulation and dam management
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farm business planning.
Producers seeking assistance or advice are encouraged to contact the Agriculture Victoria Ag Recovery Team on 1800 226 226.
For more information on farm management during and after floods, including a flood resource directory visit the Agriculture Victoria website.
Increased risk of Japanese encephalitis (JE)
Flooding and heavy rainfall have increased the risk of a range of mosquito-borne diseases in Victoria, including Japanese encephalitis (JE).
JE can cause illness in susceptible animal species including horses and pigs.
In pigs, the most common clinical signs are mummified and stillborn or weak piglets while horses usually show no signs of illness, but can present with fever, jaundice, lethargy, neurological signs, and anorexia.
Plus, for information about protecting yourself from JE, please visit the Victorian Department of Health.
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| LIVESTOCK BIOSECURITY FUNDS – GRANT PROGRAM |
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Apply now for grant funding for projects that prevent, monitor and control pests and diseases.
Victoria's Livestock Compensation Committees are seeking projects that provide ground-breaking solutions, use emergency technologies, and resolve livestock biosecurity issues for cattle, sheep and goat, swine, and honey-bee industries.
Applications are open until 11.59 pm, 23 December 2022. Discover more via the Agriculture Victoria website.
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| MANAGING LIVESTOCK IN WET CONDITIONS |
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Ongoing wet conditions can lead to a range of animal health concerns for livestock producers including (but not limited to) Barber’s pole, foot abscesses and foot scald, scours and liver fluke. Read more about each health condition and integrated herd and flock health management options on the Agriculture Victoria website.
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| EMERGENCY FEED BUDGET FOR LIVESTOCK |
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When pastures and conserved fodder are in limited supply due to the impacts of a flood, it is important to have a good understanding of the current nutritional requirements of herds and flocks now, and for the weeks and months ahead during the recovery process.
Excellent resources are available to assist with planning the nutritional needs of various classes of stock on our Feeding Livestock website where you can download the emergency feed and water budget planner to plan out requirements.
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| MYTH BUSTER: IS SUMMER RAINFALL LIKELY? |
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Listen to the recording of the latest Myth Buster: Is summer rainfall likely? where Dale Grey, Agriculture Victoria Seasonal Risk Agronomist, tackles the myth buster 'La Nina has no effect on summer rainfall in Victoria'. Dale also looks at historical climate data to consider what might lie ahead.
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BestWool/BestLamb is a partnership between Agriculture Victoria and Australian Wool Innovation Limited, which provides a network facilitating information exchange that enables producers to implement improvements in key aspects of their business.
Lyndon Kubeil, Senior Sheep Specialist 0418 532 085 or email
Alison Desmond, BestWool/BestLamb Project Leader 0409 424 274 or email
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| AWI FLOOD RECOVERY RESOURCES |
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Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) website has a range of information for wool producers affected by flooding. Visit the AWI website to access recovery resources.
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| AWI ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING |
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Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) recently held their annual general meeting and the recording is now available. Topics covered include: shearing, sustainability and the challenges of flooding in Victoria and NSW.
Listen here
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BetterBeef is an Agriculture Victoria coordinated producer and service provider network with a focus on increasing the profitability and sustainability of beef enterprises. It aims to grow and support a strong producer network featuring genuine partnerships with the private sector in co-design and delivery.
BETTERBEEF: GOOD PEOPLE - BETTER NETWORKS - BETTER PRACTICE
Darren Hickey, BetterBeef Project Leader 0457 609 140 or email
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| CATTLE SLAUGHTER ON THE RISE |
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The latest Australian Bureau of Statics (ABS) slaughter and production data for the September quarter has now been released.
Overall cattle slaughter and production increased 4 per cent quarter on quarter, while carcase weights only eased 1 kg. Although these results are below year-ago levels, slaughter numbers remain strong for the year.
The female slaughter rate rached 14 per cent, an indication the herd rebuild continues moving into the last quarter of the year.
In Victoria, slaughter, production, and carcase weights all increased by one percent reaching 299,000 head for quarter three. National calf production also increased by 50 per cent which is typical for this time of year, and Victoria saw an uptick of 77 per cent from last quarter, 14 per cent higher than year-ago figures.
For more information visit ABS.
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| Feeding Livestock Website |
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For tools, calculators, resources and livestock feed planning guides, visit the website.
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| Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) wool market review |
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For weekly commentary on the wool market from AWI trade specialists, visit the website.
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| Market reports and prices |
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Meat and Livestock Australia’s (MLA's) market information service provides producers with accurate, timely and independent market information, allowing them to make profitable business decisions.
For the latest cattle market reports, visit the MLA website.
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| AgVic podcasts: listen now to the latest episodes |
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Domestic processing: dream or reality
Only 5 per cent of the entire Australian wool clip can be processed domestically, leaving the wool industry vulnerable.
Wool Producers Australia has just released 'Ensuring a suatainable future for Australia's wool supply chain' – a comprehensive report into this very issue. Hear WPA General Manager Adam Dawes talk through the report and where this important issue heads from here.
Read the report here
Listen to The Yarn podcast.
Follow AWI on social media for the latest on sheep and wool @Facebook and @Twitter
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| The Fast Break Seasonal Climate Update |
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For the latest edition of The Fast Break – an update of seasonal climate drivers and outlooks.
The Fast Break details oceanic and atmospheric climate driver activity over the last month and summarises three month model predictions for the Pacific and Indian oceans, rainfall and temperature for Victoria.
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Visit Agriculture Victoria’s website for the latest information and resources relating to livestock and animals.
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Agriculture Victoria is delivering workshops, farm walks and online information sessions. Visit the Agriculture Victoria website for a list of upcoming events.
Follow Agriculture Victoria on social media
@Facebook and @Twitter
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| Rural Financial Counselling Service |
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The RFCS provides free financial counselling to farmers and small related businesses who are in, or at risk of, financial hardship. Counsellors can also assist applicants to apply for the Farm Household Allowance (FHA).
For more information visit the NEMA website.
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| National Centre for Farmer Health |
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The National Centre for Farmer Health (NCFH) provides health and safety education and advice to farmers and their families via the Online Ag Health program.
For more information visit the National Centre for Farmer Health.
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