Sharing Costs To Improve Farming Practices

Farmers are not just talking about change but are acting and co-investing in agricultural technologies for sustainable management of their farms.  

Practice change with machinery in the sugar industry is pivotal for modernisation. The integration of advanced machinery not only enhances efficiency, productivity and quality but also aligns with sustainability goals while ensuring a safer industry. Continuous adoption of advanced technologies is crucial to maintaining the sugarcane industry's sustainability in the global market. 

Funding through the partnership between the Australian Government’s Reef Trust and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation provided grants across the Lower Herbert, Mackay Whitsunday and Lower Burdekin regions for machinery and technology to achieve management practice changes that better match nutrient application to crop requirements and reduce losses through runoff entering the Great Barrier Reef Lagoon. 

In the Lower Burdekin, the Major Grants project provided growers with financial incentives to implement additional improvements to irrigation technology, nutrient management practices and precision agriculture. NQ Dry Tropics, supported by Sugar Research Australia, agronomy service provider Farmacist and smart farming company Aglantis, engaged with 33 growers to improve management practices on their farm, delivering over $1 million in incentive grants with farmers investing over $1.2 million of their own money.

A range of on-ground actions were funded to achieve reductions in nutrients and pesticides and improve irrigation efficiency. These included the use of Stool Zippas to reduce fertiliser and chemical run off, GPS guidance and rate control for more precise application and recording of nutrients and pesticide, modems for accurate and trouble-free data collection and management, and improved water use efficiency through increased adoption of automated irrigation technology and infield scheduling tools.

Overall, the Reef Trust Partnership-funded Major Grants projects have delivered over $4 million in incentive grants across the three sugarcane regions and farmers have invested over $6.6 million of their own money. That equates to $1.65 invested by farmers for every grant dollar received. 

The farming practice changes funded through the program are resulting in improved land management, which is positively affecting growers’ bottom lines, boosting the local economy and having a significant impact on end of catchment pollution load reduction. This is a positive outcome for the future of farming in Reef catchments and the quality of water in the Great Barrier Reef lagoon. 

Mario Barbagallo explains the benefits of combining GPS, variable rate control and Stool Zippas to improve nutrient and pesticide placement. Credit NQ Dry Tropics.
Scott Harness with his fertiliser box and Stool Zippa closing wheels in the lower Burdekin. Credit NQ Dry Tropics.

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