Latest news
November 11, 2011
Dairy biosecurity boosted as disease free deadline nears
Dairy Australia and Australian Dairy Farmers have developed a new tool to help producers implement sound on-farm biosecurity practices. The biosecurity booklet is timely as Australia prepares to claim freedom from the cattle viral disease Enzootic Bovine Leucosis (EBL) following a 15 year campaign across the industry. Effective on-farm biosecurity is needed to protect dairy herds from the introduction of infectious diseases, and to validate the EBL disease-free claim.
Dairy Australia’s Robin Condron, Manager Risk Analysis, said Dairy Biosecurity: Healthy Farms details useful information on stock movement, contact with wildlife and vermin, fencing, waste treatment and dealing with dead stock.
“It helps explain biosecurity and the role it plays in protecting your farm and the whole Australian dairy industry from the introduction of exotic diseases such as foot and mouth disease. On-farm biosecurity assesses and manages risks from animal diseases, pests and weeds. It should form part of normal farm business risk management,” Robin said. (more…)
November 3, 2011
The future of Australia’s lychee industry looks more secure following the release of a new national biosecurity plan for protection of the lychee industry. The Industry Biosecurity Plan for the Lychee Industry was developed by Plant Health Australia (PHA) in close collaboration with the Australian Lychee Growers’ Association (ALGA). The biosecurity plan was funded by Horticulture Australia Ltd through grower levies and presents the first nationally coordinated and consistent approach to identifying and reducing the risk of potential new pests for the lychee industry.
The lychee plan was developed following a review by industry, government and other relevant stakeholders of the pests from across the globe that are likely to survive, spread and establish if they breach Australian borders. High priority pest threats of the Australian lychee industry were identified, including the fungus
Brown blight (Peronophythora litchii), the Lychee fruit borer (Conopomorpha litchiella) and Witches’ broom disease. These or other identified pests would pose serious consequences for lychee growers should they enter and become established in Australia, potentially devastating lychee yields. (more…)
October 21, 2011
Celebrations for the Australian Year of the Farmer (AYOF) were officially launched at
the site of Australia’s first European farm at Sydney’s Botanic Gardens on 12 October.
The Gardens welcomed farmers, farm animals, and farm machinery. A map of
Australia made from fresh produce showcased the broad range and fine quality of the produce grown in each state and territory.
The AYOF is an education and awareness campaign, promoting the contribution farmers and rural communities make to our national economy and society. (more…)
October 19, 2011
Rod Hoare & Helena Warren
Farm Day – the annual event in May when city comes to country; when distinctly under-informed but curious city dwellers visit Australia’s welcoming farmers to get their boots dirty and learn where their food really comes from. Being into all things animal health, Farm Biosecurity News leaped on the opportunity to spend Farm Day on a property owned and managed by two experts in the field.
Dr Rod Hoare and Helena Warren run ‘Cadfor’ at Binda near Crookwell, in the NSW Southern Highlands, where they breed Murray Grey cattle and some horses on 330 acres. They focus on producing quality seed stock for stud and commercial cattle buyers and own some of the top bulls in the breed. (more…)
October 13, 2011
With online shopping becoming a major rival to traditional retailers and services such as AuctionsPlus becoming ever more popular, it seems that livestock trading is increasingly getting in on the game.But what does buying or selling online mean for the health of your animals and what are the potential biosecurity risks to your farming operation?
When it comes to biosecurity, online purchasing can be something of double-edged sword. (more…)
October 6, 2011
John Bostock knows more about biosecurity than perhaps the average grain grower. He has been a longstanding member of the Western Australian GrainGuard Council and was part of the team six years ago that worked with Plant Health Australia to develop the Industry Biosecurity Plan for the Grains Industry. For John, biosecurity is just a normal part of his day-to-day activities.
John and his son Richard operate a mixed farming enterprise of cropping and livestock on about 1500 hectares in the western high-rainfall zone of the central wheatbelt of Western Australia – although, as John notes wryly, ‘high rainfall’ is not a particularly accurate description of late. (more…)
September 22, 2011
Two biosecurity planning documents targeting pests of avocado crops were released in early September, boosting protection against exotic pests for Australian avocado production. The Industry Biosecurity Plan for the Avocado Industry and the Orchard Biosecurity Manual for the Avocado Industry were launched at the VII World Avocado Congress in Cairns.
The biosecurity planning documents are based on a risk analysis which identified specific insects, diseases and fungal infections that could damage avocado crops should they get into Australian orchards. The analysis was coordinated by Avocados Australia, Plant Health Australia (PHA) and Biosecurity Queensland bringing together key researchers working on avocados in Australia.
The high priority pests identified include avocado thrips which are causing large economic losses in Californian avocado orchards, avocado seed weevils which are a major pest in Central America, and laurel wilt which is emerging as a significant pest of avocados in the US. (more…)
September 16, 2011
Industry pioneer wins Biosecurity Farmer of the Year Award
By any measure, Pepe Bonaccordo is one of Australian agriculture’s great success stories.
Starting in 1976 as a backyard business with just 22 Pekin ducks, Pepe’s Ducks now supplies 80,000 birds a week out of its facility at Windsor, NSW, and is the largest producer of ducks in Australia and New Zealand. Having put home-grown duck firmly on the Australian dinner plate, over the past two decades Mr Bonaccordo has been cementing the future growth of the industry by developing and enforcing uncompromising standards on biosecurity, food safety and animal welfare.
These outstanding efforts saw him become this year’s Biosecurity Farmer of the Year at the Australian Farmer of the Year Awards held in Sydney. (more…)
September 16, 2011
Sandra and Peter Young’s approach to biosecurity at Queensland’s leading tropical and subtropical fruit production nursery has seen them win the plant category of the Biosecurity Farmer of the Year Award.
The Youngs started producing avocado stock over thirty years ago, but today the Birdwood Nursery range of plants reads more like a fruit salad recipe. They also provide home gardeners and hobby farmers with Gourmet Lovers and Fruit Lovers collections.
Birdwood helped pioneer a nursery industry accreditation scheme and in 2006 became one of the first nurseries to achieve EcoHort certification. (more…)
September 14, 2011
Poultry producers and other bird owners are reminded to review their biosecurity measures following the highly infectious virus recently found in pigeons in Victoria.
Routine biosecurity measures: these procedures should be everyday practice. (more…)
September 8, 2011
Pepe and Mario Bonaccordo, winners of the animal category
By any measure, Pepe Bonaccordo and Sandra and Peter Young, winners of the Biosecurity Farmer of the Year Award, are some of Australian agriculture’s great success stories.
Having put home-grown duck firmly on the Australian dinner plate, over the past two decades Mr Bonaccordo has been cementing the future growth of the industry by developing and enforcing uncompromising standards on biosecurity, food safety and animal welfare.
These outstanding efforts last night saw him become this year’s Biosecurity Farmer of the Year (animal category) at the Australian Farmer of the Year Awards held in Sydney.
“We feel very excited about the win,” Mr Bonaccordo said.
“It does tell us that a lot of the hard work that we’ve done has been recognised by other people.
“It’s important that we build a great foundation underneath our market. And that foundation is: good farming management practices, good biosecurity, animal welfare, food safety, training – that’s what brands are built on.”
Sandra and Peter Young
Winners of the Biosecurity Farmer of the Year (plant category), Sandra and Peter Young of the Birdwood Nursery, are similarly proactive in biosecurity.
Birdwood helped pioneer a nursery industry accreditation scheme and in 2006 became one of the first nurseries to achieve EcoHort certification. Producing more than 150,000 trees annually, the Youngs say biosecurity has been at the forefront of all production processes in the business
The Farm Biosecurity team would like to congratulate the winners of both categories and the other finalists. They all demonstrate that successful biosecurity practices are not only part of responsible farming – they can also be great for business.
September 7, 2011
Thomas Hill has a simple philosophy when it comes to on-farm biosecurity: everything enters and leaves the property clean.
“We don’t want to take weeds or diseases onto any other property and we don’t want them to arrive on ours,” Mr Hill says.
As a partner and manager at his family-owned farm at Colbinabbin, Victoria, he oversees 1500 hectares of crops and 200 hectares of pasture for Merino ewes in a prime lamb venture, as well as doing his share of driving headers in a contract harvesting business run from the farm. Mr Hill’s dedication to implementing best-practice biosecurity standards at ‘Colbinabbin Hills’ have seen him named as a finalist in tomorrow’s Biosecurity Farmer of the Year Award (animal category). (more…)
September 6, 2011
Bill Casey of Ulverstone, Tasmania, who grows pyrethrum daisy for its valuable insecticide, is the latest finalist announced in the national Biosecurity Farmer of the Year Awards being sponsored by Plant Health Australia and Animal Health Australia. Mr Casey works for Botanical Resources Australia (BRA), a major player in contracting pyrethrum growers in Tasmania, providing agronomic and other crop advice to growers as well as harvesting, transport and storage logistics.
BRA has recently expanded its operations from northern Tasmania onto the mainland. Come summer, the white fields of daisies, so familiar in Tasmania, will be a common sight around Ballarat, Victoria, with combine harvesters reaping the growing number of fields of flowers in the district. (more…)
September 6, 2011
Major poultry producer in the race for prestigious award
By any measure, Pepe Bonaccordo is one of Australian agriculture’s great success stories.
Starting in 1973 as a backyard business with just 22 Pekin ducks, Pepe’s Ducks now supplies 80,000 birds a week out of its facility at Windsor, NSW, and is the largest producer of ducks in Australia and New Zealand.
Having put home-grown duck firmly on the Australian dinner plate, over the past two decades Mr Bonaccordo has been cementing the future growth of the industry by developing and enforcing uncompromising standards on biosecurity, food safety and animal welfare. These outstanding efforts have seen him make the final of this year’s Biosecurity Farmer of the Year Award. (more…)
August 31, 2011
Lynn and Ian Rathjen, owners of ‘Whistling Eagle’ at Colbinabbin, have been on a high since they were told that they are finalists in the 2011 Biosecurity Farmer of the Year Award.
The Rathjens’ property is a successful vineyard with some cereal crops, pastures and stud Border Leicester flock. They make red and white wines on site from the 30 hectare vineyard but also sell fruit to others. The wine is sold at boutique outlets Australia wide.
The Rathjens sell rams and use 60 hectares of cereals and pastures for mulch, hay and supplementary stock feed. They also manage a 20 hectare native tree plantation which adds aesthetic value to the property, improves biodiversity by providing habitat to many species of birds and provides future income options when the stand matures. (more…)
August 30, 2011
Honey industry leader in the running for biosecurity award
Lindsay Bourke, Tasmania’s biggest beekeeper, is on a mission to keep Australia’s honey the best-tasting, purest and safest in the world. The owner of Australian Honey Products manages 3000 hives and produces 250 tonnes of honey every year, a large portion of it organic.
His bees pollinate 80 crops of fruit and vegetables, and his multi award-winning honey is processed and extracted in a Launceston heritage building which once housed a maternity hospital. But it is for his implementation of best practice biosecurity measures to ensure food safety that Mr Bourke has made the shortlist for the prestigious Biosecurity Farmer of the Year award. (more…)
August 19, 2011
Tom Hill
The judges have concluded their difficult task and the results are in! Six finalists will vie to become the 2011 Biosecurity Farmer of the Year – three each in both the animal and plant categories.
Hosted by Kondinin Group and ABC Rural, and sponsored by Plant Health Australia and Animal Health Australia, the award recognises the efforts of producers dedicated to keeping their operations free of diseases, pests and weeds.
Animal finalists
Livestock producers Lindsay Bourke (of Launceston, Tasmania), Pepe Bonaccordo (South Windsor, NSW), and Tom Hill (Colbinabbin, Victoria) are now in the running for this prestigious national award. (more…)
August 16, 2011
There have been many high-profile stories in the media lately about the importation of Chinese apples and South American grapes, as well as incursions of Chestnut blight, Myrtle rust, Asian honeybees and a number of weeds. Recent media attention has heightened concerns about the risk of exotic plant pests making their way into Australia.
While it’s true that these issues may change the pest threat picture for Australia, concerns about exotic plant pests aren’t new. We know that there are over 300 high priority pests that aren’t yet in Australia, all of which pose potential threats to our plant industries, environment and rural communities. Any of these, should they establish in Australia, have the potential to seriously affect productivity in some kinds of crops, potentially threatening the sustainability of industries, as well as adversely affecting market access and compliance requirements for our produce. (more…)
August 11, 2011
Cherry growers now have a best practice biosecurity guide to reduce the risk of new pests damaging their orchards with the release of the Orchard Biosecurity Manual for the Cherry Industry.
The manual, released by Plant Health Australia (PHA) and Cherry Growers Australia at the 2011 National Cherry Growers Conference in Adelaide, is written for producers, with plain and practical advice that can be applied on the farm, enhancing protection for their orchards and livelihoods.
The practical orchard advice in the manual is part of a package that supports implementation of the Industry Biosecurity Plan (IBP) for the Cherry Industry. The IBP has recently been reviewed with Version 2 being released in conjunction with the Manual.
The IBP was developed by PHA and Cherry Growers Australia following a comprehensive assessment of pests from across the globe that could threaten cherry production, as well as an analysis of the best ways to avoid any of them becoming established in Australia. (more…)
August 5, 2011
Livestock producers need not fear implementing simple measures to protect their farms
‘Prevention is better than cure’ has long been the mantra of the medical profession and most people would agree with the basic principle. It is generally accepted that it is more economical to prevent disease than to treat it long term and it is certainly less traumatic, indeed multiple studies have investigated and supported this. Why then does the word ‘biosecurity’ cause such consternation in the agricultural sector? Especially when biosecurity measures can protect not only livestock health but human health as well… (more…)
