Clever app gives cane growers a way to calculate yields on the land Change to recycling program New mate for on farm

l GORDONVALE

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Nick Dalton

CANE growers and harvesting contractors now have access to Harvest Mate: a free online platform and smartphone app designed to capture additional sugar yield from the paddock.

The decision-support tool was funded by the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) and Sugar Research Australia (SRA). It uses data collected by SRA from many years of trials across the sugar industry, and is supported by detailed economic data, collected and analysed by agricultural economists at DAF.

SRA agricultural machinery specialist Phil Patane said that Harvest Mate had been developed to help growers and contractors look at the potential gains and cost implications of changing harvesting practice, including the impact on harvesting costs.

“In 2019 SRA received 148 responses to a survey that asked growers and harvesting contractors about their harvesting practice,” he said.

“The vast majority of recipients told us that they didn’t know the production and economic benefits when changing from their current practices.

“Harvest Mate has been developed to fill that knowledge gap and increase profitability.

“And it’s been developed to be user-friendly, which we hope is reflected in the name.”

SRA chief executive officer Roslyn Baker said Harvest Mate was “an exciting example of how we work closely with cane growers to apply the latest research findings with economic outcomes”.

David Singh farms in the Kennedy district and has been involved in trials of the decision-support tool for the past three years.

“As farmers, we run businesses. And when you’re running any business it’s important to understand what your costs are,” he said.

“Harvest Mate will allow us to see the true cost of harvesting. We haven’t been able to do that before.

“It will tell us the blocks and varieties that are profitable and those that aren’t. And that allows us to plan to understand our parameters and be more efficient with our time.”

Cane growers and harvesting contractors can now register to use the tool by setting up their user profile online at harvestmate.au. They can then download and use the free app (from the Google Play Store or Apple Store) on their smartphone while out in the paddock.

l FAR NORTH QUEENSLAND

GLASS wine and spirit bottles are now included in the Containers for Change refund scheme starting in November.

From November 1, glass wine and spirit bottles will be eligible for a 10-cent refund after 98.1 per cent of the 6600 Queenslanders consulted said yes to the expansion.

The state government is working closely with Container Exchange (COEX), manager of Containers for Change, to prepare facilities and ensure capacity within six months.

Environment Minister Meghan Scanlon said this expansion reflected the effectiveness of the refund scheme.

“We’ve heard you Queensland. Plastic bottles, cans, poppers, and very soon glass wine and spirit bottles will all give you a 10-cent refund, just in time for the festive season,” she said.

“When we launched Containers for Change five years ago, only 18 per cent of beverage containers were being recovered and recycled in Queensland.

“Since then, that number has grown threefold, with Queenslanders having returned more than six billion containers and receiving $630 million in return.

“It’s a program that isn’t just helping Queenslanders cash in – it’s also making sure we divert good materials from landfill to be recycled.”