What's On

• Upcoming events

What's New

• Biosecurity online courses
• Undertaking a risk assessment and action plan

BestWool/BestLamb

• AWI and ParaBoss: Plan ahead for barbers pole webinar recording
• The Lambing Planner App update: Have your say on the upgrade

BetterBeef

• BetterBeef Group Profile: Using fodder beet to fill the winter feed gap

Beef and Sheep News

• Feeding Livestock website: Want to know
• Soil moisture and temperatures in pastures
• Herd and flock numbers for each region
• Access past webinar and workshop recordings on biosecurity and emergency animal disease online

Ag Recovery

• Recovery after fire: Practical steps for farmers
• Supporting landholders impacted by fires and floods across Victoria
• Financial and business support
• Regional weather and climate guides

Quick Links

• Links to Feeding Livestock website, AWI, MLA, The Fast Break, Rural Financial Counselling Service and more

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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Online e-learning courses for you, your farm workers and visitors.

Each course takes about 15 minutes to complete.

• Foot-and-mouth disease awareness
• Lumpy skin disease awareness
• Come clean, stay clean, go clean – when visiting farms.

For more information visit the Agriculture Victoria website. 

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Biosecurity is about managing risks. Each property is different and faces different challenges, so it is critical to assess the biosecurity risks that are most likely to impact your property.

Biosecurity risks can be broken down into the following broad categories: livestock, vehicles, equipment, people, and supplies. The risk impact will change for livestock when they move onto, around, or off your property.

As part of developing a biosecurity management plan, an important step is to conduct a risk assessment and develop an action plan.

A risk assessment is simply the process of identifying a hazard, the consequences of this hazard, and the probability this hazard will happen.

When undertaking the risk assessment, try to determine:

• how severe the risk is?
• whether any existing control measures are effective
• what action you can take to control the risk
• how urgently action needs to be taken.

This allows you to target and apply your resources to areas which are likely to achieve the best result.

The next step is an action plan. This converts the risks identified in the risk assessment and outlines the actions you intend to implement on farm to prevent or reduce impacts to your property.

The actions you enact on your property need to be specific and set out how you are going to manage the risk. They need to be practical and achievable with your resources and budget. They also need to relevant to what you produce and how you manage your property.

For example, during your risk assessment, you might determine that visitors could introduce a new disease, pest or weed via their footwear.

To manage this risk the action plan may include setting up a boot washing station and purchasing plastic tubs, scrubbing brushes, and some recommended disinfectant.

Alternatively, your action might be to purchase boots or gumboots in common sizes for visitors to use around the farm. Both are effective measures to reduce the risk of pests or disease being transferred via mud or dung on footwear from property to property.

More information about Victoria’s biosecurity can be found on the Agriculture Victoria website.

Information on risk assessments and property biosecurity management planning can be found on the farm biosecurity website. Visit the Farm Biosecurity website to download a risk assessment factsheet.

For information about upcoming farm biosecurity planning workshops and webinars as well as resources about foot-and-mouth disease, visit Agriculture Victoria website.

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Did you miss the AWI and ParaBoss webinar on Barber’s Pole worm on 18 August? Good news, the webinar recording is now available. After severe barbers pole worm outbreaks earlier in the year, many sheep producers are asking ‘is this the new normal and how do we avoid these problems in the future?’

This webinar is an opportunity to hear from one of Australia’s leading sheep worm experts, Dr Brown Besier about steps you can be take now, including how to plan a prevention and monitoring program and recognise the signs of barbers pole worm disease.

To listen to the webinar recording visit the AWI website. 

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Do you use the Lambing Planner App? It was developed by the Western Australian Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPRID) and ASHEEP in 2017 to provide information about management for each stage of the ewe reproductive cycle based on joining date. It’s due for an upgrade and this is your chance to provide feedback.

View the lambing planner online. Provide your feedback online.

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A group of beef producers in north-east Victoria recently completed a three year on-farm demonstration to investigate: Fodder beet – high quality feed that justifies the costs? Or a high-risk strategy that may not pay off?

Read more about the Producer Demonstration Site and the findings on the Agriculture Victoria website.

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The Feeding Livestock website has many useful resources on feeding livestock and on pasture for beef and sheep. Here is a snapshot of some items that might interest you.

Managing pugging and damage to wet area
With the recent high rainfall received across many parts of Victoria, managing livestock in wet areas is front and mind for many producers. Where grazing areas are prone to pugging and waterlogging, having strategies and options in place to minimize the damage to pastures and soils.

Focus on fodder conservation webinar recording
With welcome rain and pasture growth across Victoria, thoughts have turned to the conservation of fodder. This recorded webinar draws on the vast knowledge of Dairy Extension Officer, Michele Jolliffe. It is focused on the production of quality silage and identifying the costs involved.

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Soil moisture probes installed across the state, by Agriculture Victoria and other organizations, measure real time soil moisture and temperature to 80 cm depth in grazing pasture sites.

As shown in Figure 1, soil moisture profiles at most perennial pasture sites are full to depth, indicating at least an average spring ahead. A wetter than average spring forecast would give a prediction of above average and a prolonged season.

Soil temperature is currently above average across the state (Figure 2) enhancing early spring growth.

To view all sites and their data visit the Extension Aus website.  

A good spring provides opportunities including pasture renovation, conservation, and summer forage crops. Contact Jane Court at jane.court@agriculture.vic.gov.au for the recording of the recent LiveFeed seasonal webinar – summer forage options for growing lambs.

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Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) has released its annual herd and flock maps based on recent Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) regional flock and herd data for the 2021 financial year.

Visit the MLA website to read the full article. 

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Access the session recordings on the Agriculture Victoria website. 

• Foot-and-mouth disease awareness webinar
• Creating an on-farm biosecurity plan workshop

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An updated recovery guide is now available to help farmers rebuild and provide a one-stop reference to the support available. The guide includes steps to take immediately after the fire and for short-term recovery and longer-term rebuilding. It covers re-fencing, dealing with erosion and flooding, pasture recovery, pest and weed control and preparing for the next season.

The printed booklet is available from Agriculture Victoria, by contacting our agriculture recovery managers (details noted below) or phone 136 186. Or access the digital version online.

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The Victorian and Commonwealth Government are supporting landholders impacted by fires and floods across Victoria.

For more information on bushfire recovery programs or recovery from floods/storm events, visit the Agriculture Victoria website.

Regional Agriculture Victoria recovery managers;

• North East – Kylie Macreadie 0428 975 728 or email
• Gippsland – Darren Hickey 0457 609 140 or email.

Visit the Bushfire Recovery Victoria website or 1800 560 760.

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Rural Financial Counselling Service

The Rural Financial Counselling Service (RFCS) has an experienced team ready to assist primary producers and small rural businesses in recovery planning.

Financial counsellors can help develop financial forecasts and business plans required for lenders or investors, plus connect with support agencies and services.

RFCS provides free financial counselling to farmers and small related businesses who are in, or at risk of, financial hardship. They can also assist with filling in forms and grant applications.

For more information or to book an appointment call RFCS Gippsland on 1300 045 747 or RFCS North East on 1300 834 775.

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The Regional Weather and Climate Guides project is part of the Commonwealth Government Drought Assistance Package.

The project aims to improve the resilience of farming businesses by providing localised facts about the likelihood, severity, and duration of key weather variables in regions across the country.

The weather and climate information will be delivered through a set of guides corresponding to Australia's Natural Resource Management regions.

The project is a collaboration between the Bureau of Meteorology, the CSIRO, and FarmLink Research.

The guides have been developed in collaboration with representatives from each NRM region to ensure the information is tailored to the needs of local farmers and agribusinesses.

For more information visit the Bureau of Meteorology.

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Visit Agriculture Victoria’s website for the latest information and resources relating to livestock and animals.

Agriculture Victoria is delivering workshops, farm walks and online information sessions. Visit the Agriculture Victoria website for a list of upcoming events.

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 RFCS website or contact your local recovery support officer by searching the RFCS online directory. 

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 or contact Cecilia Fitzgerald on (03) 5551 8533

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