Developments in sugarcane cultivation in the Ord River region John Noble, chairman of the Ord Sugar Industry Council. It is clear that the most important effect on gross yield is the size of the crop, and.
COMPARISON OF AVERAGE INCOME AND EXPENSES PER TONNE HARVESTED FOR ALL GROWERS
TOTAL EXPENSES
OPERATING PROFIT/(LOSS) Less: Finance Costs
NET PROFIT CCS
PRODUCTION / HA
GROWERS
GROWERS
- Farm Business Management Peter Twine
- Why the interest in Farm Business Management?
- Requirements for Farm Business Management Improve the management skills of farmers
- Benefits of improved Farm Business Management Redistribution of inputs to farm
- How to address Farm Business Management skills Motivation to set high goals
- Farm Business Management partnership options Supply or demand driven?
- Current Farm Business Management projects Financial advice alone
Today in the international market we have to contend with the disruption of supply and demand expectations. Their assignment lost its scarcity value and the benefit of the tariff was reduced. The Bureau and its funding base will be part of the review of the sugar industry legislation.
9. ? Future
It is in the midst of this diversity of inputs and the complexity of the environment that the issue of Farm Business Management arises. Farm Business Management is the term applied to the operation of these decision-making processes on farms where the objectives are simply related to the operation of the farm business. Farm business management can then be defined as the integration of technical and financial parameters involved in the decision-making process and taking actions on the farm with the aim of achieving a business result.
All these questions simply relate to the complexity of the business environment on the farm. Through the provision of an environment where the strengthening of the grower's financial and business management skills can take place, there will be a general improvement in the industry's production and profitability. In terms of a decision maker's basic management skills, it has been suggested that there is a need to provide an opportunity to create a better understanding of Farm Business Management and develop a system where technical and financial advice can be effectively integrated.
Farm Business Management is not just an involvement in the financial affairs of the farm. Finally, on the issue of developing Farm Business Management skills in the sector, SRDC recently sponsored a program of work to achieve a broader understanding of Farm Business Management in the sector.
Farmers' Terms of Trade
This trend is not expected to diminish even though the recent strength in commodity prices has marked some increases in recent months.
Queensland Sugar Industry
- Buy an existing developed farm
- Develop new land
- Lease or share farming
- Co-operative ownership of land and/or machinery
- Diversification
Again, if growers are buying undeveloped land, they need to be careful not to overpay in the current environment. In some cases it has been a lack of suitable infrastructure that has hindered its development - for example the Jardine and Mulgrave areas of the Burdekin River Irrigation Area. Cooperative ownership of machinery is most effective when the timeliness of the operation is less critical or the equipment is not used very often.
Adopt best practice in the sense that producers maximize their economic returns and therefore their profits, and the reliability of their production on the existing cultivated area through the use of efficient irrigation, suitable varieties, good management practices and timely. Adopting best practice not only reduces the producers' exposure to these risks more than any of the previous four options, but there are a number of other benefits associated with this option. By maximizing the level and reliability of production on the existing area, the farmer has a greater ability to expand acreage through the purchase of additional land.
I'm specifically referring to on-farm diversification into alternative crops or businesses, additional crops for fallow cash, or things like agri-tourism that can provide better returns per hectare or per labor unit. With these alternatives, growers must ensure that their primary source of income is not neglected.
What are the options?
Buy an existing developed farm 2. Develop new land
Lease or share farm cane land 4. Co-operative ownership
Adopt best practice 6. Diversification
There is the growing and harvesting of sugar cane, and the transporting and grinding of the sugar cane in the factory to produce sugar. It may become apparent that greater efficiency and profitability in one area can reduce profitability in another. Smaller growers who cut their own sugar cane will ultimately be freed from the worry of replacing expensive machinery.
Savings for mills would be in areas of more efficient use of the shared fleet of baskets and larger locomotives, e.g. In the past, regulations related to expansion forced the value or opportunity cost of growers' labor down. This would encourage growers to ensure that their cane is cut in the shortest possible time.
Gradually reducing the difference between group no. 1 and no. 2 gives them an incentive to fall in love at the end of the week. But who is employed to assess the impact of millers' actions and decisions on growers?
THE ORD SUGAR INDUSTRY
THE ORD RESOURCE
THE SHAPE OF AN INDUSTRY
GROWERS AND MILLER TOGETHER
SUGAR MARKETS
LOCATION
THE DAM
THE LAND
THE CLIMATE
THE PEOPLE
THE SHAPE OF A SUGAR INDUSTRY
INDIVIDUAL CONTRACTS
FOCUS IS ON COOPERATION
NOVEL REVENUE SHARING
OVERSIGHT BY ORD INDUSTRY BOARD
REVENUE SHARING
TOTAL REVENUE
LESS
HARVESTING COSTS LESS
MARKETING COSTS AND ANY OTHER MUTUAL COSTS LEAVES
REVENUE FOR SHARING
GROWERS RECEIVE MILLER RECEIVES
BEST PRACTICE GROWING COSTS ACTUAL MILL COSTS (Deteirnined by agreed consultant) (Financially &technically
PROFIT FOR SHARING IN PROPORTION TO ASSET VALUES
EARLY YEARS TO CSR'S W.A. REFINERY
MARKETING FUNCTION BY ORD SUGAR
CLOSE CONSULTATION WITH QSC No surprises
SOIL TYPES
- Good surface drainage is installed and waterlogged conditions are minimised
- High volume irrigation is applied where row lengths may be longer than 1000 m
- Correct amounts of irrigation (80-90 mm) are applied
- Plant cane is irrigated within 4 days of planting and 5) Reduced tillage is used at planting and ratooning
- Cuts of less than 10 cm occur during levelling or if larger cuts do occur the topsoil is stockpiled, the subsoil is removed and the topsoil replaced (locally known as "boxing
- The slope of blocks is kept to a minimum (less than 1:1000)
- Deep ripping these soils during Mow. This allows water to penetrate into the soil profile as deep as the cultivation
- Shorter row lengths are adopted (500m or less),
- The correct amount of water is applied to these soils
- Topsoil is replaced on any areas cut during laser levelling
- Soil conditioners are applied when surface sealing occurs
- Row lengths and slopes are suitable for the soil types, 2) Weed control is effective,
- Irrigation requirements match crop needs, and
This has implications when planting, as a cloddy soil does not provide good contact with the soil. Research and experience has shown that irrigation of these soils should occur within four days of planting for successful establishment. “Back planting” and minimum tillage in ratons to overcome arable and waterlogging problems on these soils. Sodic duplex soils are duplex soils with a high sodium content (ESP > 15%) in the soil profile.
These soils are generally duplex soils with very fine topsoil with non-wet clay subsoils. Another problem that can. What may occur over time is surface sealing on some of these soils using low salinity irrigation water. These soils are comparable to the delta alluvial soils where sugar cane has been grown for 100 years, but represent only 10% of the BRIA.
However, some of these soils may also experience surface sealing if low-salinity irrigation waters are used. Also these soils suffer from much greater weed pressure than other soils and many of them have walnut present.
TOPOGRAPHY
- Try to keep soil types together when planning the farm. This means running the drill direction with the soil types rather than across them
- If the cane rows run across the soil types then sodic soils are best at top of the rows
- Drill lengths should be 800m to 1000m on cracking clays and sodic soils or approximately 500 m on non-sodic or gradational soils if permeability is a problem
- Slopes should be approximately 1:1000 although they maybe steeper; 1:500 on the more permeable soils
- Levelling a block does not have to involve one continuous grade but can be sectioned into a number of grades to reduce the area cut during levelling or to avoid cutting sodic soils
The main limitation in these non-sodium duplexes is their high permeability and subsequent water use efficiency. However, to reduce capital installation and management costs on BRIA farms, growers have increased the length of the drill with the longest drills being 2.2 km). Some of the soils have extremely sandy soil profiles which are permeable and this can lead to very inefficient flood irrigation.
Buyers of new farms in the BRIA have a good base of information on which development decisions can be made. Sodic duplex soils have the limitation of soil depth and leveling decisions must take this into account. and graded soils have the limitation of excess permeability or surface sealing and the correct row length and tillage practice or soil conditioner must be used. Many factors influence the farm planning decision and the one essential requirement is for flexibility and good advice in the planning process.
In this paper, I aim to highlight the most important areas of potential cost savings in the operation of cane cultivation. These cost savings are available through good planning and management of the following key areas.
1) SQUARE, RECTANGULAR, OR VERY SLIGHT PARALLELOGRAM SHAPE
The initial farm design is a compromise between the finished square block with equal long rows and the capital cost to achieve this ideal layout.
2) EVEN LENGTH ROWS
3) EVEN SOIL TYPES WITHIN ROWS 2
While this system minimizes the usual loss of water that flows at the end of each drill during irrigation, the main advantage is the flexibility it allows in irrigation management. One setup runs enough drills to get the irrigation water to reach the end in 20-22 hours with an extra 2 hours to allow more even infiltration at the bottom end of the drills and ensure the slowest drills reach the end. With the trend toward longer boreholes, one unintended consequence has been an increased variance in the times it takes for irrigation water to reach the end.
Cross-working is not carried out, as it is necessary to prepare too much soil in front of the planters. There are two excellent publications that I would highly recommend that any BRIA cane farmer should read. In furrow irrigation it is important to ensure that the fertilizer is applied below the water level in the furrow to ensure this.
Rifting of the centers along with the application of gypsum is generally required to obtain acceptable yields from these problematic soil areas. Most farmers start in BRIA and carry out essentially the same procedures they use on their home farm.
LINKAGE
IMPLEMENT
TYNE RIPPER YOEMAN 17 TYNE CHISEL
IH 770 OFFSET 56 PLATE
BONEL ROTARY HOE 4.8M BEDFORMER
ROW FERTILIZER STOOL SPLITTER
HODGE TRASH INCORPORATOR
TYNE + CRUMBLE ROLLER
TYNE + 2 YOEMAN + ROLLER
NUTTALL COTTON KING DAVCO 3 ROW 15 SPRING
TYNE
SPRING TYNE >
SPRING TYNE <
DAVCO HJXL-UP 2 ROW SUPERIOR MOWER 4.6M
FLUMTNG ROLLER
BONEL OFFSET 3PL 20 PLATE
HEADLAND SPRAY BOOM FORKLJET
TONNE CRANE
CAT 4
CAT 3N
CAT 2
This is consistent with the goal of the sugar industry to be profitable in the short term, while managing and protecting our base resources to ensure profitability for future generations. Improving these aspects of soil acidity is the first of the integrated issues that benefit profit and sustainability. This approach will enable assessment of the historical risk of different approaches to fertilizer nitrogen management.
Approx. 9 kg/ha of the nitrogen in residues appeared in the next crop and a further 49 kg N/ha was present in old litter and the surface 92 cm of soil. Mike's experiments are in rows spaced 1.5m apart and involve traffic on the stool, near the stool and in the middle of the gap. Lower adoption in the Burdekin (1 to 10%), in the Central and Southern Districts (5 to 35%) and in New South Wales (0 to 12%) depends on real and perceived problems with components of the above performance criteria.
Research findings and industry experience have shown the importance of good surface drainage in the success of the GCTB system. The full benefits of the system are not realized until three to four years into the system.
CONCLUSION
The Canegrowers' booklet "Caring for the Environment" shows that at least some of our industry representatives realize how important it is for the sugar industry to appear to be environmentally sensitive. The Miljoen Hole Lagoon is so named because of the large number of waterfowl that were once found there. Once the base or toe of the riverbank rock is stabilized, trees can be established.
In northern Queensland, the continuity of a 20m-wide riparian tree corridor is believed to be essential to the survival of the endangered cassowary, enabling it to access currently isolated remaining forest areas. It was mentioned in my introduction that I am on the Steering Committee overseeing the implementation of the Sugar Industry Infrastructure Package in the Tully area. That committee is increasingly recognizing that SUP offers a low-cost option to remedy at least some of the damage done.
One of the topics covered in detail in the video is farm drainage and its adverse effects on the environment. One of these appears to be a reduction in oxygen levels in the remaining lagoons. Some of the largest natural lagoons were found to have zero or near zero oxygen levels.
Alex
Going to court
Julius
Red & green shaded areas were previously unproductive land
Red area is now block 14
Blue area is lagoon
Tonnes harvested from block 14
After lagoon construction
