In this edition:

• Biosecurity basics covered in new podcast season
• 2024 crop disease guides available online
• Workshop to help build farm business confidence
• Calf health - the future of your herd
• Interstate used grain machinery must meet Victorian biosecurity laws
• Reminder to protect valuable paddock trees when burning stubble
• It's never you, until it is
• After the Flood podcast series Episode 6
• AgTech Innovators Season 2 Episode 5
• Women and Leadership scholarships
• In case you missed it
• What's on

We all play a role in keeping Victoria safe from biosecurity risks.

To help all Victorians play their role, Agriculture Victoria’s new podcast season Biosecurity Basics takes a deep dive into the fundamentals of biosecurity, including practical things listeners can put in place to play their part in protecting our animals and environment.

Program Manager Emergency Animal Disease Industry Engagement, Kellyanne Harris, said listeners will hear from people engaged in biosecurity.

‘It doesn't matter how many animals you have, how big or small your property is, biosecurity is everyone's business,’ Ms Harris said.

‘Every livestock owner or person living on a small or lifestyle farm can make changes today to improve their biosecurity and help protect their property from pests and diseases.

‘Created in collaboration with RSPCA Victoria, the new AgVic Talk series features experts from RSPCA Victoria and Agriculture Victoria as well as farmers who share their knowledge on how people can build biosecurity into their day-to-day farming practices.’

In episode one, Erica Smith from Glenstrae Highlands talks about how she went about introducing some basic biosecurity practices when setting up her property in Gippsland.

In episode two, Brett Davidson from Agriculture Victoria and Rachael Laukart from RSPCA Victoria cover how both agencies are helping producers manage risk and improve their biosecurity practices.

‘Listeners will receive advice on what to include in a biosecurity plan, the importance of Property Identification Codes (PICs) and where to go for tips and advice about biosecurity practices and steps you can take on farm,’ Ms Harris said.

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

• Follow AgVic Talk on Spotify
• Follow AgVic Talk on Apple Podcasts

You can find out more and listen to other AgVic Talk episodes at agriculture.vic.gov.au/agvictalk

To find out more about Agriculture Victoria’s work on managing biosecurity in Victoria, visit the website

Farmers can now download the 2024 editions of the cereal and pulse disease guides to help make informed decisions around disease management.

Agriculture Victoria’s plant pathology research leader Dr Joshua Fanning said the release of the updated disease guides complements advice from Agriculture Victoria on disease management activities.

‘The 2024 Cereal Disease Guide and 2024 Pulse Disease Guide rank susceptibility of new and commonly grown grains such as wheat, barley, oats, lentils, faba bean and chickpea.

‘Growers should consult the current guides for the latest ratings and definitions to plan disease management activities to prevent yield losses this season.’

‘Disease ratings are the first and most important step in managing disease so it’s important to understand the latest resistance ratings of varieties.

‘In susceptible varieties disease can develop quickly and require greater management. Particularly diseases like stripe rust and Septoria in wheat, net blotches in barley and botrytis in pulses which have been of concern over the last few years.’ Dr Fanning said.

Dr Hari Dadu, Agriculture Victoria cereal pathologist, said a particular concern in cereals in 2024 is the emergence of fungicide resistance to Fluxapyroxad (Systiva®, Group 7) in barley net form net blotch.

‘In addition to this new resistance in Victoria we have resistance to multiple fungicide groups, including some triazole (DMI, Group 3) and strobilurin (Qol, Group 11) fungicides in wheat powdery mildew, and some triazole fungicides in barley net form net blotch.’

‘To reduce the chances of fungicide resistance continuing to develop, integrated disease management is required, including growing resistant varieties, avoiding growing the same crop in succession, spraying fungicides only when required and rotating fungicide groups,’ Dr Dadu said.

The 2024 Cereal Disease Guide and 2024 Pulse Disease Guide are available on the Agriculture Victoria website and from AppleBooks.

The guides are produced with support from Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) and provide updated disease ratings and advice on reducing disease risk for the 2024 season.

Do you want to better understand your farm business and farm finances?

Agriculture Victoria is hosting 3 free workshops with Pinion Advisory to build skills and confidence in farm finance.

The sessions are aimed at beef and sheep producers around the Ararat, Colac and Hamilton areas. The Ararat session will be held on 30 April, Colac 1 May and Hamilton 2 May.

Understanding finance can be overwhelming and this workshop will help farm businesses have a better understanding of their financial position.

The workshop will support farmers to build skills, knowledge, and confidence to manage their farm business finances.

The workshop will be presented by Pinion Advisory’s Clinton Emslie and Esmée de Looff who have significant agricultural and agri-finance experience.

Clinton is a finance consultant and has over 10 years of applied experience with large banking organisations. He will deliver useful guidance on how to become a more ‘bankable’ business.

Esmée is a south-west local with hands-on experience on-farm, as well as delivering whole farm management and skill development programs.

Clinton said the workshops will cover a wide range of financial and banking topics.

‘We invite everyone to attend these workshops, regardless of your current financial knowledge. It’s an excellent opportunity to deepen your understanding of these vital topics and gain new skills that can significantly benefit your business.

‘Investing just a few hours of your time could make a substantial difference to your farm's financial health,’ he said.

The sessions will include building and interpreting a financial budget, being bank ready and what farmers need when approaching the bank. 

There will be discussion about debt, risk and how to implement learnings into an action plan.

The workshop is being delivered by Agriculture Victoria through the Farm Business Resilience Program and is jointly funded through the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund and the Victorian Government’s Future Agriculture Skills Capacity Fund.

For further information on the session go to the events page or contact Hannah Manning on 0400 532 595 or hannah.manning@agriculture.vic.gov.au

Dr Jeff Cave, Agriculture Victoria Senior Veterinary Officer

In mid-March Wodonga was host to the Australian Cattle Veterinarians Annual Conference.

This two-day annual event attracts over 150 cattle veterinarians from across Australia. The theme of this year’s conference was ‘The Next Level’, signifying the state of art material being presented.

Australia is fortunate to have well renowned cattle veterinarians who are pleased to share their knowledge.

A presentation by keynote speaker, Dr Sam Barringer from the United States covered respiratory disease in calves and its diagnosis.

Like many of the conference presentations, Dr Barringer built upon the basics that respiratory disease in calves is caused by a combination of viruses and bacteria that work together in causing disease in calves.

Affected calves are likely to have predisposing factors such as inadequate colostrum intake and poor health, and environmental factors such as poor hygiene, overcrowding, poor air quality, and a lack of shelter.

Even if the calf recovers, an affected calf will generally have poor weight gain, an increased age at which it reaches maturity, an increased age at first calving, decreased milk production, and an increased chance of early culling.

The state of art technology presented was the use of ultrasound in diagnosing the calves which have respiratory disease.

Generally, calves that show the clinical signs of respiratory disease are severely affected and if not treated early will always suffer a set back from their early illness.

Interestingly, through ultrasound a proportion of calves that appear clinically normal will also be found to have respiratory disease.

It would be reasonable to ask, ‘Why don’t those calves appear to be sick?’ The likely reason goes right back to the fact that cattle were animals of prey.

If they appeared sick, they were more likely to be hunted, therefore for survival they had an evolutionary advantage in appearing healthy for as long as possible.

With the advances of technology that producers now have access to, they are in a stronger position to make better herd-health decisions.

Jim Moran, Victorian Grains Industry Biosecurity Officer, Agriculture Victoria

Importing second hand farm machinery such as tractors, seeders, sprayers, harvesters, baling or storage equipment from interstate can provide an alternative to buying brand new.

However, there are a few matters to consider before you buy.

Besides the costs of the machine and its transport, there are other costs involved in ensuring the machine meets Victorian biosecurity legislation (Plant Biosecurity Act 2010) and the Conditions of entry described in the Victorian Plant Biosecurity Manual.

Used agricultural equipment and spare parts could pose a high risk to Victoria’s unique environment and agricultural industries.

Given the nature of their work, there is a high possibility used machinery could harbor weeds, pests and diseases that we don’t want in Victoria.

Therefore, unless they meet specific conditions of entry outlined in the Plant Quarantine Manual (PQM), they are prohibited from entry.

For example, Annual Ryegrass Toxicity (ARGT) is not in Victoria. ARGT host material includes cereal crops, first cut lucerne, pasture hay, stock feed or plant waste and could be located anywhere in WA, SA or NSW. 

Any machinery from these states must meet the specific conditions of entry to minimise any risk of introducing ARGT into Victoria.

Equally, Victoria is free from the fungal disease, Lupin Anthracnose (LA).

Important lupin growing states like SA and WA don’t have area freedom from LA and therefore, restrictions apply to the importation of machinery into Victoria from there.

These (and other) biosecurity risks are carried in soil, animal or plant material found on or inside used farm machinery. Therefore, they must be thoroughly cleaned, free of plant material and visible soil, and inspected by a government officer.

A Plant Health Certificate must then be issued before movement into Victoria.

There are costs and time involved with such a thorough clean, often requiring the partial dismantling of the machine or equipment to access all the hidden away, hard to get at areas.

For example, debris is commonly found collecting in the driver’s cabin, on the chassis, in the grain bin, augers, belts, elevators, spreaders, choppers, tyres, rims, sieves, radiator and under any guards.

Always check early with an Agriculture Victoria Biosecurity officer before you sign up to import a used farm machine into Victoria.

The import prohibition doesn’t apply if the host material is grown on, sourced from or last used on a property that is located in a state or territory for which area freedom exists.

In the case of LA, this exemption currently applies for QLD, NSW, TAS and the NT, meaning the unrestricted importation of LA host material from these locations is allowed (provided no other quarantine restrictions apply).

Currently QLD, TAS and NT have state freedom for ARGT so no permit or PHC is required for machinery from these states.

Tips for buyers:

• It’s the importer’s responsibility to ensure all imported, used agricultural equipment is thoroughly clean prior to export and a PHC is obtained.  The cost of dismantling, cleaning, and certifying a grain harvester sometimes totalling over $10,000.
• Used agricultural equipment found to be unacceptably contaminated on arrival will be re-exported or subjected to an expensive cleaning process at the expense of the new owner.
• Use an experienced machinery dealer who regularly imports from other states.  Different dealers offer varying support and services in the price they quote.
• Don’t get stuck with a dirty machine. It’s a massive biosecurity risk to your farm and the grains industry. If it doesn’t arrive clean, you will have to clean it before using it.
• Practical and inexpensive farm biosecurity tactics are found at www.farmbiosecurity.com.au and www.agriculture.vic.gov.au/biosecurity.
• The Grains Farm Biosecurity Manual is found here.
• Please contact Agriculture Victoria on 136186 for any biosecurity related matters.

The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) is asking landowners to take steps to protect paddock trees when burning stubble on their properties. 

Native trees are protected by law and there are ways to avoid damaging them. Good planning and management are crucial to ensure their long-term survival. Once lost, native trees – especially large old trees – are impossible to replace in a person’s lifetime.

Paddock trees benefit biodiversity and good preparation before burning on your property will avoid harmful impacts.

There are a few actions you can take to protect paddock trees:

• slash around the base of the tree to establish an adequate fire break
• move woody debris from around the base of the tree
• wet the area around the tree before beginning your burn. 

Before starting a burn, it’s also important to ensure you have adequate water and the right equipment on hand to extinguish the fire.

For some council areas, fire restrictions are still in place, with a Fire Danger Period declared by the Country Fire Authority (CFA) until the start of May. This means that a permit is required to burn grass, stubble and other vegetation on your property until the Fire Danger Period ends.

To find Fire Danger Period dates for your area, visit www.cfa.vic.gov.au/warnings-restrictions/fire-danger-period/fire-restriction-dates

Please follow CFA guidelines outlining what you can and can’t do during a declared Fire Danger Period. Find more information on the CFA Can I Can't I web page here. 

To find out more about native vegetation and download a Stubble Burning fact sheet, go to www.environment.vic.gov.au/native-vegetation/farming-and-native-vegetation 

To report concerns about stubble burning and the destruction of paddock trees, contact your local council.

Jack Armstrong - Yalla-Y-Poora sheep and cropping farmer, knows the impact safety incidents can have on not only farmers, but also the local community.

‘A successful day in farming for me is being able to go home after a good day’s hard work knowing I’ve achieved what I set out to achieve and haven’t had any big mistakes.’

‘Fatigue in farming is extremely common. When I’m fatigued, my decision making is impaired, my reaction time – it increases the risk for mistakes to happen so much more,’ Jack said.

Jack’s tips for managing fatigue on the farm:

• try and stick to a routine, such as a certain amount of hectares or hours each day
• take five for a stretch and drink of water
• check-in with others
• don’t rush - take your time to think things through and do the job properly.

Rebuilding and recovering when your livelihood has been washed away overnight is hard.

However, some remarkable people and organisations lending a helping hand make sure you are not alone.

Bianca Jones, a central Victorian farmer, shares her story of repair and the ‘angels’ that helped following the 2022 floods.

One such organisation was the Rural Financial Counselling Service.

Anna McGee, Rural Finance Counsellor, explains how they reached out to farmers not long after the floods peaked.

🎧 🎧 Listen via the AgVic website

Episode 5: Cultivating success for AgTech with Paul Voutier

Building a startup and cultivating success.

Discover how Ambit Robotics is using generative AI imaging to help growers understand prospective yields and improve production.

Paul Voutier shares valuable insights about using robotics in agriculture in this episode of AgTech Innovators.

🎧🎧Listen online via the AgVic website

Advance your career with a Farming and Agriculture Sector women’s leadership scholarship.

Partial scholarships of $1,000 - $5,000 are available to help women in select industries participate in our world-class leadership courses.

Courses are available for women at all levels.

Closing date has been extended: Apply by Friday 26 April 2024.

Enquire at Farming and Agriculture - Women & Leadership Australia (wla.edu.au) or call 1300 938 571.

Handle with care: bobby calf transport requirements

Agriculture Victoria is keen to remind producers of their responsibilities when transporting bobby calves.

READ THE MEDIA RELEASE IN FULL HERE

Managing canola pests using beneficial insects, spiders and mites

Australian grain growers will benefit from improved pest management strategies with the commencement of two new research projects focusing on beneficial insects (beneficials) in canola.

Read the article in full on the GRDC website here.

Latest variety information on-hand for growers through NVT Harvest Reports

Growers and advisers across Australia can now use the latest results on the performance of different grain varieties – incorporating results from the 2023 harvest – to help them choose the best variety for their situation.

Read the article in full on the GRDC website here.

Details about Agriculture Victoria events can now be found in one spot on our website.

Visit agriculture.vic.gov.au/events to find out what's on.

Join our webinar to hear from experts Dale Grey and Dale Boyd on Victoria’s seasonal climate outlook and soil moisture update for autumn.

Seasonal Risk Agronomist Dale Grey will provide an update on Victoria’s climate outlook for autumn and soil moisture expert Dale Boyd will provide key highlights from monitoring sites from around the state.

When: Wednesday 17 April – 12 pm.

Register here.

Click here for more information and to stay up to date with our upcoming climate webinars.

Understanding finance can be overwhelming and this workshop will help farm businesses have a better understanding of their financial position.

The workshop will support farmers to build skills, knowledge, and confidence to manage their farm business finances.

The workshop will be co-delivered by Pinion Advisory’s Clinton Emslie and Esmée de Looff who have significant agricultural and agri-finance experience.

ARARAT

WHEN: Tuesday 30 April
TIME: 9:30 am - 3 pm
WHERE: Ararat, Agriculture Victoria Office, 233-239 Barkly Street.

REGISTER ONLINE HERE

The 2024 Landcare forum will be held from Wednesday 8 to Friday 10 May in Bendigo. 

Find out more at www.landcarevictoria.org.au/2024forum

The Southern Australia Livestock Research Council (SALRC) is excited to announce their third biennial Livestock Conference with the overarching theme of Environmental challenges and opportunities for Australian livestock industries.

Sessions will include keynote speakers and group workshop activities and cover the following:

• improving land, air and water
• solutions for human capacity
• economic considerations and market impacts.

Click here for more information about the upcoming conference.
If you would like to register for conference updates you can join the mailing list here

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