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Tasmanian Agricultural Land Red Meat Producers manage a significant proportion of the state’s natural resources. Source: Prof. Tony Norton
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Dr Dale MillerResearch Sub-program Leader
Tasmanian Red Meat Industries• $240M from
livestock (06/07)
• ¼ of gross farm gate value of Tas. agriculture
• 2500 commercial beef and sheep meat producers
Tasmanian
Agricultural Land
Red Meat Producers manage a significant proportion of the state’s natural resources.
Source: Prof. Tony Norton
Current Red Meat Industry IssuesGlobal National Local
Availability of credit Producer’s declining terms of trade
Rationalisation of industries
Climate change Climate change & Government policy
Drought management & pasture decline
Rising demand for food Demand for healthier, smarter foods
Biosecurity & food quality, including GM usage
Demand for sustainable, clean, & ethical farming
Public scrutiny of animal production systems incl. welfare & environment
Response to reduced sheep numbers
Rising oil values Rising fertiliser and energy costs Alternative enterprises/use
Trade liberalisation Reliability of water supplies Availability of skilled labour
Financial Benchmarking Project
Aims: improve farm business management decisions and develop industry level financial data.
• 3-year statewide project, funded by DPIW • aim for 200 businesses, ends 2010• identify drivers of profitability & areas for improvement• promote benchmarking as a business management tool
Global National LocalAvailability of credit Producer’s declining terms of
tradeRationalisation of industries
Rising oil values Rising fertiliser and energy costs Alternative enterprises/use
Spatial analysis of farm attributes and profitability
Global National LocalClimate change Climate change & Government
policyRationalisation of industries
Demand for sustainable, clean, & ethical farming
Public scrutiny of animal production systems incl. welfare & environment
Response to reduced sheep numbers
Aims: relate profitability to bio-physical attributes of farms using GIS, to develop industry decision support tools
• 2-year project, funded by MLA & UTAS, ends mid-2009 • Masters student – Sarah Gatenby• proof of concept then scaled up to industry level questions
Increase sheep breeding performance
Global National LocalDemand for sustainable, clean, & ethical farming
Public scrutiny of animal production systems incl. welfare & environment
Response to reduced sheep numbers
Aim: to improve neonate lamb survival rates
• studies of metabolic maturity at birth, funded by MLA• national review on genetics and epigenetics, Sheep CRC• dual-purpose winter cereal crops for shelter
and improved ewe nutrition in early lactation, MLA ?
Increasing meat production through irrigation
Global National LocalRising oil values Rising fertiliser and energy costs Alternative enterprises/use
Reliability of water supplies
Aim: develop grazing systems for irrigated winter cereals
• studies on SR, grazing method, residuals after grazing• funded by MLA (08/09), Grain and Graze (07/08)• benefits = diversify income & spread costs, faster turnoff,
pasture rest periods, fill winter feed supply gap.
Development of sustainable grazing systems
Global National LocalClimate change Climate change & Government
policyDrought management & pasture decline
Demand for sustainable, clean, & ethical farming
Public scrutiny of animal systems incl. welfare & environment
Rising fertiliser and energy costs
Aims: develop productive, low input, mixed perennial pastures & an understanding of selective grazing
• study newly developed TIAR pasture species – Eric Hall• 3-5 year project, seek funding from AFF, CFOC and MLA• WUE, resilience, productivity, nutritive quality & species integration plus diet selection and persistence
