WHAT DO CANEGROWERS AND STUDENTS FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING HAVE IN COMMON?

They share a passion for agriculture and have a keen interest in the Queensland sugarcane industry.

In July, a group of students from the University of Wyoming and the Senior Research Scientist of Agricultural & Applied Economics Thomas (Tom) Foulke, visited CANEGROWERS as part of a study tour of Australia. The tour was hosted by Peter Lloyd from Agritours Australia and centred around Australia’s agricultural led export sector and included the Queensland sugarcane industry so the group could learn about the role sugar plays in Australia’s export markets.

Matt Kealley, Senior Manager for Membership and Innovation welcomed the group to the Brisbane office and provided a rundown on work that CANEGROWERS does for growers and the industry at a local, national and international scale. He also explained the growing and production process as well as the sustainability challenges the industry is facing and how the sugarcane industry is tackling this using Smartcane BMP. The questions from the students were diverse, ranging from how sugarcane was grown and how sugar was made, to the varieties used, R&D and technology, and how growers manage their environmental and social responsibilities required by export markets.

" learned so much about something I had never thought about before

Erin a first-year student from Wyoming was full of questions and said she had “learned so much about something I had never thought about before”.

The following day, the tour visited Rocky Point to see sugarcane firsthand. The students were hosted by Greg Zipf, the Chair of CANEGROWERS Rocky Point and Josh Keith, Chief Operating Officer for Rocky Point who make sugarcane mulch, bulk and bagged premium quality products for thenursery, home gardener, agriculture, and erosion management industries. Greg explained the crop cycle and farming system used in Rocky Point and outlined the importance of diversification in the district.

Who would have thought that such a simple product would use such sophisticated tech

Josh then took the students on a tour of the factory which started in the shed looking at sugarcane harvesters and sugarcane trash bailing equipment. Their yellow Cameco harvester was being serviced but the familiar John Deere cab and green parts resonated with a couple of the students who talked about John Deere equipment on their home farms in Wyoming and Colorado.

Tom explained seeing the harvester in parts for repair was a chance for the group to really get into the production process and see what it takes to make the whole process happen. It demonstrated how even sophisticated production processes often come down to somebody with a wrench who knows what they are doing and is willing to put that energy and know-how to work.

The tour moved through the various parts of the Rocky Point business, from the diverse range of gardening products, to the robots bagging sugarcane mulch and then onto the composting and recycling facility. Josh explained the diversification strategy of the family run business and the production of compost and gardening soils which all form part of a Rocky Point product line.

“It’s important to share the diversification story of Rocky Point and showcase the sugarcane industry here in the district. It was great to have the students visit and hear their questions as we can always learn something from each other,” Josh said.

Tom said the tour of the Rocky Point factory was a fantastic example of innovation and entrepreneurship in the ag sector and appreciated Josh explaining the entire production process from field waste to palletised product.

“This is exactly what we are looking for with our trip, examples of how innovation and new thinking drives success in building new opportunities in the agricultural sector,” Tom said.

Elizabeth, from California, liked how Rocky Point was recycling old pallets into mulch and Noah, a third-year student who comes from a farming and trucking family in Nebraska was amazed at the technology used in the packaging process.

“Who would have thought that such a simple product would use such sophisticated tech,” Noah said.

Tom explained the students come from a variety of agricultural backgrounds from corn/soy farms to extensive livestock operations, but sugar was new to them. This was an opportunity to give them a new perspective. This is the third tour by the University of Wyoming to Australia and the third time they have visited CANEGROWERS.

“CANEGROWERS is a great opportunity to start the process of opening these young people's minds to new ideas and new ways of doing things. The fact that it comes so early in their Australian adventure means this is the first opportunity for them to see something new,” Tom said. 