Crop and Pasture Report

Mr McBRIDE (MacKillop) (14:36): My question is to the Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Continue. The member will be heard in silence.

Mr McBRIDE: Can the minister update the house on the 2017-18 Crop and Pasture Report outcome?

The Hon. T.J. WHETSTONE (Chaffey—Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development) (14:36): I thank the member for MacKillop for his insightful question. Of course, we all know how important the crop and pasture sector is and how much it contributes to our state's economy. Our primary industries are one of the backbones of the South Australian economy, in particular in regional areas. Yes, this year has been quite a testing year for the majority of the grain growing regions in South Australia.

Eyre Peninsula and Yorke Peninsula had fairly successful years, but sadly there were areas that missed out on the finishing rain, particularly in the South-East and the Mallee. Those areas were also quite severely affected with those November frosts that came through and impacted on the grain itself, on the grain head filling out, and a lot of the crop estimates had to be reduced.

What I can say is it was slightly below the long-term average at 7.7 million tonnes, following from a record 2016-17 grain harvest of 11.1 million tonnes, and I think our farmers have done an incredible job through adversity over this last growing season. We all know that primary production—grain growing, any form of farming—is always fraught with risk, and I think our primary producers do an outstanding job in their risk management and dealing with the elements. Those elements have played a role in last year's crop. We are starting off with a very dry subsoil moisture profile coming into this season. Some areas have had good starting rain, and it is great to see, but we haven't had those widespread soaking rains that every farmer who is looking to the skies is waiting for. For those who have, seeding is underway.

It is great to see that both cereal and legume crops look as though they are going to be planted at an average planting regime. But I would like to commend our grain growers here in South Australia. They are using some of the world's best technology through the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) and the great work that SARDI is doing to be able to give us market advantage, to get our farmers to have a capacity to increase yield and to put in crops of new types in the rotations that are very important with today's technology around primary production and grain growing.

It is also very important to note that a majority of our cereal farmers are now working on no till or minimal till. It is also very important to know that some of the new crop rotations are world groundbreaking technology. It enables the primary producer to be able to utilise every square metre of dirt for the most benefit to their bottom line. They are competing on a more and more global stage as every year approaches, and it is important that we are in front of the game. It is important that, as primary producers, we are supported.

This government, the Marshall Liberal government in South Australia, have put good initiatives in place to support primary producers to make sure that we have the infrastructure in place, to make sure that we upskill our farmers, because we all know nowadays that we don't just employ a tractor driver: we employ a technician, we employ engineers and we employ specialists to undertake the vital role that our primary industries need.