Report from the Chair and Managing Director
Keith Perrett - Chair and Peter Reading - Managing Director
In 2007–08, seasonal conditions were generally better than the severe drought of the previous year but there was significant variability across major grain producing areas. It was disappointing that in many regions the good initial break was not followed by adequate finishing rains. On the positive side grain prices were sharply higher due to low global stocks. Growers continued to face the impact of higher input costs, labour shortages and the uncertainty of changing wheat-marketing arrangements. The GRDC, in collaboration with the Australian Government, research partners and grain growers continued to drive research and development to help provide growers with improved technologies to address the challenges and opportunities presented by the rapidly changing grains industry.
Grains industry production in 2007–08
The production of winter grains and oilseeds in 2007–08 was 22.5 million tonnes, an increase of 4.9 million tonnes or 28 percent from the 17.6 million tonnes produced in 2006–07.2 Winter crop production was 9.7 million tonnes in Western Australia and 4.9 million tonnes in South Australia, which together accounted for 65 percent of total winter crop production in Australia.
Summer crop production in 2007–08 was 3.5 million tonnes, showing an increase of 59 percent compared with 2.2 million tonnes produced the previous year due to favourable seasonal conditions. For the major summer broadacre crop of sorghum, production more than doubled the previous year’s harvest to reach 2.7 million tonnes. The higher grain prices and improved cropping conditions resulted in higher GRDC revenue than in the previous year, which together with reduced expenditure resulted in an operating surplus versus the previous year’s deficit.
The GRDC collaborated with the other rural RDCs to agree on a methodology for impact assessment. With the assistance of an independent consultant, the GRDC undertook impact studies of five project clusters in 2007–08, to assess the industry benefits as well as public spillover benefits. The impact assessment of the ACRCP demonstrated that $23 worth of benefits were generated for every dollar that the GRDC invested in the program.
Part 2 of this report provides more details on these achievements, and on the outcomes of many other GRDC initiatives and ongoing projects.
Challenges in 2008–09
Colin Wellings from the ACRCP at the CIMMYT annual disease screening nurseries located at Toluca, Mexico. Photo: Colin Wellings
The GRDC operates in an ever-changing grains industry. Its business environment in the year ahead is expected to be influenced by various factors, including climate change, declining terms of trade, changed grain-marketing arrangements, market volatility, high input costs, biosecurity issues and consumer attitudes.
The year 2008–09 will be the second year of Prosperity through Innovation, the GRDC Strategic R&D Plan 2007–12. The GRDC will continue to emphasise increased collaboration, and implement strategies that will provide growers with the technologies and practices they require to remain competitive in global grain markets. The GRDC will continue to measure the impact of R&D on the grains industry and the wider community.
The GRDC’s achievements depend on the effective and timely implementation of the corporation’s strategies, which in turn depends on the cooperation of the Board, panel members and staff, and strong relationships with key customer groups and research partners. As it implements corporate and output group strategies in 2008–09, the GRDC will continue to collaborate with other rural RDCs, federal, state and territory governments, and research partners. We thank them for their significant contributions to grains industry R&D in 2007–08.
We are pleased to note that our Annual Report 2006–07 has been recognised for high quality, and commend this year’s report to the reader.
The GRDC’s achievements in 2007–08
This report covers the first year of implementation of the GRDC’s Strategic R&D Plan 2007–12, Prosperity through Innovation. The Strategic R&D Plan 2007–12 emphasises increased collaboration, and clearly defines performance measures and outcomes to provide growers with the technologies and practices they require to remain competitive in global grain markets. Improved measurement of the impact of R&D on the grains industry and the wider community is a key focus over the plan period and progress against performance measurements is detailed throughout this Annual Report.
The GRDC, in collaboration with other rural R&D corporations (RDCs), CSIRO, and federal, state and territory governments, facilitated the development of the draft national Climate Change Research Strategy for Primary Industries. The GRDC worked with those partners to develop relevant performance indicators and time-lines to implement the strategy. Periodic reviews of the strategy were built in, to determine whether variations will be needed in the future to adjust to the evolving operating environment. In addition to the work on the national climate change research strategy, the GRDC was involved in various collaborations with other rural RDCs and progressed the development of a national grains research, development and extension (RD&E) strategy.
The GRDC supported work by the Western Australian Department of Agriculture and Food to better understand the likely impact of global climate change on the Western Australian grains industry. Key findings indicated that summer rainfall is likely to increase and autumn, winter and spring rainfall to decrease in most locations in the Western Australian wheat belt. Adaptation will clearly be needed to both mitigate risk in drier regions and take advantage of opportunities in wetter regions. The GRDC facilitated a study of greenhouse gases emitted in the production and delivery of one tonne of wheat to port in south-western Australia.
The study was undertaken by Agricultural Research Western Australia partners and the Australian Government Department of Climate Change. Research also continued at the GRDC-supported Australian Grains Free Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment facility in Victoria to investigate the interacting effects of elevated carbon dioxide, irrigation, nitrogen and variety on wheat growth and production under field conditions.
GRDC investment with its partners resulted in the release of 16 new wheat varieties in 2007–08, some of which have produced yields up to 15 percent higher, in National Variety Trials, than varieties commonly grown by Australian farmers. Four new triticale varieties that were also released, two each from the University of Sydney and Australian Grain Technologies, have wide adaptation and yields up to 30 percent higher than previous triticale varieties. A new oat variety, Yallara
, yielded 2 percent higher than its predecessor Euro, and some of the 15 new canola varieties that were released yielded up to 10 percent higher than commonly grown varieties.
As part of its strategy to manage biosecurity risks, the GRDC completed contingency plans for dwarf bunt of wheat, fusarium wilt of canola, barley stripe rust, barley stripe mosaic virus and sunn pest. The GRDC facilitated a partnership between the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the Australian Cereal Rust Control Program (ACRCP) to screen Australian varieties for resistance against the exotic Ug99 stem rust pathogen, in Kenya.
2 This total updates the figure of 15.7 million tonnes shown in last year’s annual report, which was based on the best estimate available at the time of publication.