Page 10 - National Poultry Newspaper

Attendees of the 2019 speed mentoring session.
Are you attending the Australian Poultry Science Symposium in February?
DID you know the Chook Chat Shack is running a speed mentor- ing session?
This event will be held at the 31st Australian Poultry Science Symposi- um, on February 17, 2020 from 6-7.30pm.
This will be about one hour after the start of the APSS poster session, giv-
ing participants the op- portunity to attend both the poster session and the speed mentoring event.
Drinks and finger food will be provided.
How does it work?
Mentors are invited from industry and men- tees from academia.
Mentors and mentees will have three minutes togeth-
er, then the mentee will move on to the next mentor. Following this ‘speed dat- ing’ session, mentors and mentees will have addi- tional time to network and
engage in further dialogue.
Why should you attend?
This ‘ice breaker’ session will introduce you to in- dustry representatives and academic researchers and
provide valuable time to discuss relevant research ideas and current challeng- es the industry is facing.
Registrations close Feb- ruary 1, 2020.
Register to attend ei- ther as a mentor or men- tee at app.smartsheet. com/b/form/d107bc9fac c741fe9a117486df0ee552
$4m grant round opens to enhance food chain traceability
THE Department of Agriculture is invit- ing applications for grants worth $4 mil- lion to fund projects to enhance traceabil- ity in the food supply chain, enhancing trust in Australian-grown products and boosting the competitiveness of agricultural exporters.
Australia’s reputation as a source of clean, green and safe prod- ucts has helped secure a strong foothold in dy- namic Asian markets seeking healthy, nutri- tious food.
Effective traceabil-
ity systems are critical for continued access to these export markets, responding to demand from consumers domes- tically and internation- ally for greater trans- parency and real-time convenience around the origins and safety of food in modern digital marketplaces.
An initial $4 million round of Traceability Grants Program fund- ing, opening from Janu- ary 8, will be available to individuals, commu- nities, government or private sector organisa- tions, as well as agricul-
tural export industries, to enhance traceability in supply chains.
The program will pro- vide opportunities for successful applicants to carry out projects that enhance product trace- ability and the competi- tiveness of Australian produce, for example by supporting assertions around organic or loca- tion-specificproduction.
The Traceabil- ity Grants Program is part of the Modernis- ing Agricultural Trade agenda announced by the Australian Gov- ernment to support the
target of a $100 billion agricultural sector by 2030.
This $7 million pro- gram will run over a minimum of two rounds from the end of 2019 to June 2023.
The Traceability Grants Program Opportunity Guidelines set out how the program will operate.
The round opened Wednesday, January 8, 2020 and will close on February 21, 2020.
The Grants program will be managed by the Community Grants Hub which can be accessed at agriculture.gov.au
Central Queensland | EGG FARM FOR SALE
Only 30 minutes from Rockhampton, this well established egg farm has become available. With a capacity of 65,000 layers, the farm has a high turnover producing 30,000 dozen eggs a week. With established markets and sta , this is an excellent business opportunity.
Some of the features of this farm include land size of approximately eleven acres, with town water. There is a brooding shed for chicks, two pullet sheds and two layer sheds. The natural ventilated Hi rise layer sheds are fully automatic with feeders, collectors and cooling system. The egg processing rooms are tted with egg washer, Moba Prima 2000 egg grader and cool rooms. Three distribution vehicles deliver eggs to market.
The manager’s residence is a four-bedroom home with o ce and storage room.
The farm will be sold fully operational with all equipment needed to continue this ongoing cash ow business.
Highlights include:
• 30 mins from Rockhampton • 65,000 layer capacity
• 11 acres land size
• ESA level 3 accredited
• Feed mills
• Fully operational
• Automated equipment
• 4-bedroom home
• 5 sheds
• Cool and processing rooms
For more information please call Nadine
07 4938 1276
Reflecting on the year that was 2019
AS a nation, we rarely stop to consider how im- portant the agriculture sector and our farmers are to the foundations of society.
Whether it’s growing safe and nutritious food, fibre for essential tex-
tiles or the foliage for our sporting grounds to the gardens that bring us joy and a place for relaxation.
Australia’s agricultural sector is also protecting the environment and pro- viding land stewardship; helping ‘even up’ the ledg- er in our balance of pay- ments with our exports; or creating employment in regional and rural com- munities.
As we look ahead in the new year, it is timely to reflect on some successes, challenges and future ac- tions.
National Agriculture Day every November gives us the chance to re- flect on the pivotal role agriculture has played in the country’s history, cel- ebrate its successes, rec- ognise the challenges and resolve to work towards its bright future.
ABARES headline num- bers proudly boast around 18,401 agricultural busi- nesses across Queensland, with these businesses employing over 300,000 people across the whole food supply chain as well as generating close to $20 billion.
Looking at the poultry industries, chicken is now the most popular meat in Australia and is expected to account for 44.3 per- cent of total meat con- sumption, equivalent to 49.9kg per capita accord- ing to IBISWorld.
Queensland remains the second-largest poultry- producing state in Aus- tralia (accounting for 21 percent of total Australian GVP in 2018-19).
At a national level, Aus- tralian poultry meat pro- duces 1.27 million tonnes
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www.poultrynews.com.au
by GEORGINA DAVIS CEO
per year, contributing $575.9 million to the Aus- tralian economy in 2019.
Meanwhile, per capita egg consumption has in- creased over the past five years to 244.8 according to Australian Eggs Lim- ited and is expected to in- crease further as consum- ers look to buy alternative sources of protein.
Queensland remains the largest producer of eggs, with 30.9 percent of the industry’s revenue worth $845.8 million at a na- tional level.
National Agriculture Day also gives us an op- portunity to educate the public by providing an insight into what we do and our extensive range of food production systems.
For the intensive animal industries including poul- try, the protracted drought has presented some tough times, with substantial in- creases in the cost of feed supplies.
For most consumers, the visual images portrayed on TV present dry dams, bare paddocks and hungry stock.
So, few would appreci- ate the direct correlation that sustained high feed costs have on the long- term profitability of all in-
tensive animal businesses. Indeed, current state and federal drought poli- cies do not demonstrate an understanding of the different business models that operate across the intensive animal sectors either, and government support arrangements largely focus on the me- dia-portrayed images of
drought only.
The drought has in-
creased the public’s awareness of the vagaries of life on the land, and consumers have generally responded with more con- scious decisions about the produce they buy.
As the cost of produc- tion and inputs increases, agriculture must make a concerted effort to contin- ue educating consumers about breaking the barrier between ethical intent and ethical behaviour.
Continuing to buy lo- cal produce and paying a fair price is the best way consumers can support farmers.
By doing so, they will continue to play an active role in helping to build more resilient, sustainable farming businesses and ensure a bright future for Queensland agriculture.