Summary

This project engaged both existing and new grain growers, along with the agribusiness sector, within the Gulf River catchments to develop local cropping systems and agronomic skills.

In the Gulf River catchments of North Queensland there was limited experience and knowledge regarding the performance and profitability of potential dryland and irrigated broadacre grain crops. Understanding the variability in crop performance was critical to equipping local landholders and potential investors with the knowledge and risk assessments needed to develop suitable grain cropping systems for the region.

This project provided local landholders and agribusiness personnel with the opportunity to gain the knowledge and skills required for successful grain production, integrated within existing extensive grazing enterprises in the region.

Expected outcomes

• Enhanced knowledge of the performance of grain crops of interest within farming systems in the Gulf Rivers region – including insights into crop choice, agronomic practices, yield potential, yield variability and profitability.
• Improved agronomic skill among landholders and their staff engaged in cropping activities in the region, enabling them to achieve the identified yield potential for the most promising grain crops.
• The potential GDP improvement from grain cropping in the region is conservatively estimated at $10 to $50 million per annum from irrigated cropping alone, based on a gross margin of $1,000 per hectare and cropping areas ranging from 10,000 to 50,000 hectares.
• Diversification of the agricultural sector in the region is expected to increase employment opportunities. For irrigated production, this could equate to approximately 4 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs per 1,000 hectares – resulting in an estimated 40 to 200 direct jobs.