Rangeland Webinars
Webinars have become a great way to communicate particularly during the current COVID-19 pandemic. They are not just videos to watch – many live webinars are interactive with the ability to discuss, send and receive information in real-time.
The FutureBeef website lists a number of upcoming webinars that may be of interest to ARS members. These include Forecasting Australia’s livestock future (May 13 and 20), Better forecast, better production (May 21) and Maintaining the integrity of Australia’s red meat and wool industries (June 9). The calendar of upcoming events can be found at https://futurebeef.com.au/events/
Beef Central also recently published a list of upcoming webinars and online events for cattle industry stakeholders. Run by a variety of presenters, the list can be found here.
EMUs underway in Western Australia
Rangelands NRM is working with a number of pastoralists to prepare Ecosystem Management Understanding (EMU) summaries for their properties. EMUs are an environmental plan that can be used within a whole of business management plan and help build natural resource management skills and environmental sustainability. Read more at https://rangelandswa.com.au/emus-in-the-rangelands/
Thinking of purchasing new farm management software?
The WA Department of Primary Industries and Rural Development’s Business Improvement Grant (BIG) program commenced in 2015 with the aim of helping to improve the performance and resilience of northern beef businesses. The D’Arcy family, who own and manage Lyndon Station in the Southern Pilbara, used their grant to trial a software package designed to streamline and coordinate management of all their properties. Read their story here.
What is the future of the burger amidst the rise of fake meats?
Burgers are a quintessential meal in the USA, making up around 64% of the beef eaten by consumers in food retail outlets. Australia is currently a major player in this market through the export of large amounts of frozen lean meat trim to the USA but how may this change in the future particularly with the rise of alternative protein products or “fake” meat? Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Beef Extension Officer, Kieran Smith, recently ventured over to the USA as part of the Australian National Intercollegiate Meat Judging Association (ICMJ) team and was tasked with examining how consumer demand for burgers may change in the future. Highlights of his trip are available in this FutureBeef report
Latest Issue of Across the Outback
The April issue of the SA Arid Lands NRM Board newsletter contains several articles of interest including:
- using infra-red and motion activated cameras to provide a solution to measuring trends in the numbers of foxes, cats and native wildlife present across more than 1,000,000 hectares of the SA Arid Lands region.
- information about South Australia’s Buffel Grass Strategic Plan for 2019-24
- information regarding the newly appointed Pastoral Board
- news from the Biteback wild dog control program.
All issues of Across the Outback can be downloaded from the Publications page of SA Natural Resources website.
National beef cattle herd to enter rebuilding phase
Beef Central reports that widespread rain since February has fuelled the prospect of the national beef cattle herd entering a rebuilding phase for the first time in three years. Meat & Livestock senior market analyst Adam Cheetham said “for the first time since 2017, many producers were now in a position to seriously consider rebuilding depleted herds, particularly across southern Queensland and New South Wales.” Read more here.
The Great Cane Toad Muster
Western Australia’s Rangelands NRM reported on the Great Kimberley Cane Toad Muster, held recently to collect cane toads and process their meat for inclusion in sausages for an aversion program for northern quolls. Find out more at https://rangelandswa.com.au/muster-collects-cane-toads-for-aversion-program/
Is COVID-19 impacting weather forecasting?
Will the dramatic reduction in aviation traffic due to COVID-19 restrictions have a noticeable impact on Australia’s weather forecasting? A recent article in Grain Central discusses this issue from both an Australian and global perspective. Read more here