18 ON THE LAND
thursday 22 july 2021
burdekinlocal.com.au
Talkin’ about your generation: Farmsafe Australia takes an intergenerational stance for farm safety Farmsafe IN 2020, agriculture was again ranked as the second most dangerous industry to work in by rate of fatalities1, with those over the age of 50 most at risk from farmrelated injuries or fatalities2. Farmsafe Australia is looking to tackle distressing trends and is pleading with communities to take greater responsibility in promoting safety issues in all rural areas, ahead of Farm Safety Week. This year, Farmsafe Australia wishes to celebrate how farms offer one of the most unique lifestyle experiences for all ages. Australian farmers are incredibly fortunate that they can live and work in the same place, and Farmsafe Australia wants to ensure all farmers have access to information that keeps them and their families safe and healthy from when they first pick up an egg at the age of two, right through to stepping
off a tractor at the age of 92. Themed ‘Farm Safety Through The Ages - From 2-92’, this year’s campaign will highlight the key safety issues and risks that are most prevalent throughout the different life stages of a farmer, in the hope it will reduce the risk of injury, illness and fatalities so commonly associated with agriculture. Charles Armstrong, Chair of Farmsafe Australia says this campaign is not about restricting families who live and work on farms, far from it. It’s about embracing everything a life lived on the farm can offer, while minimising the risk of injury. “We are focused on making safer farms an intergenerational topic of conversation in every rural community. The number of farm related fatalities in this country has not shifted dramatically in a decade3, so there has never been a more important time to discuss
Weekly production figures Burdekin region mills Week 6, ending 17 July 2021 Cane crushed Invicta Pioneer Kalamia Inkerman Burdekin
This week 147,701 81,875 77,829 56,475
CCS Invicta Pioneer Kalamia Inkerman Burdekin
Season to date 833,497 436,426 410,693 335,987 2,016,603
363,879 14.48 14.38 14.09 13.86
13.80 13.82 13.46 13.27 13.65
14.28
Weekly variety performance for region Variety % CCS Variety Q240 42 14.33 Q183 KQ228 29 14.18 Q208 Q232 10 14.04
% 10 7
CCS 14.68 14.07
Comments: Throughput for the Burdekin mills in week six was good overall, with more than 360,000 tonnes put through the rollers. This brings the season-to-date total to just over 2M tonnes – or 25 per cent – of the estimated Burdekin crop. The weekly result was above budget, despite Inkerman Mill’s extended stop to repair leaking boiler tubes and Invicta Mill’s stop to carry out repairs to the bagasse system. Average weekly CCS was 14.28. This was again well above budget thanks to the dry cool conditions. The highest CCS sample was 17.2 from a rake of Q240 plant cane in the Inkerman Mill area. John Tait Cane Supply Manager Burdekin Region
how we can make Australian farms a safer place to live and work,” said Mr Armstrong. “By improving the availability of information on hazards, risk factors and practical safety solutions, we want to ensure all communication between agricultural representatives, farmers, government and other stakeholders is active,
consistent and productive. It has never been more essential to develop a ‘safety culture’, while alleviating the pressures of farming life, across all generations within rural communities. Farmsafe Australia is a national not-for-profit entity, advocating for farmers. It aims to connect state farming organisations,
peak commodity bodies, influential advocacy bodies and other groups that share a common interest in agricultural health and safety. Its initiatives are based upon the philosophy that the primary responsibility for farm safety rests with individual farmers, farm workers, and their families.
CONNECT NOW: For more information on farm safe practices visit www. farmsafe.org.au. 1 Safe Work Australia Fatality Statistics, July 2021 2 Safer Farms 2020 Agricultural Injury and Fatality Trend Report, December 2020 3 Safer Farms 2020 Agricultural Injury and Fatality Trend Report, December 2020
Project wraps up but YCS mysteries remain CANEGROWERS Chairman Paul Schembri INDUSTRY scientists and growers have worked on the mystery of Yellow Canopy Syndrome (YCS) since it first appeared in 2012 but despite all the effort, major questions remain and more work is needed. YCS has spread to most of Queensland’s sugarcane districts and sometimes the symptoms are so severe, it has a big impact on a growers’ cane yield and therefore income. Recently, a major project costing around $10 million dollars was wrapped up by Sugar Research Australia. With the cooperation of growers across many regions, more than 30 scientists and support staff approached the problem from a variety of angles and we thank them for their efforts. Their final report, available on the SRA website and summarised in the July Australian Canegrower magazine, reports that no disease, vector, genetic or nutrient link was found to cause what has been described as induced leaf aging. We do know that YCS interrupts the movement of sucrose from the leaves to the stalk – but the research has not been able to pinpoint why it happens or how to stop it. The key, though, is plant stress. Basically, YCS will kick a crop when it is already down, and it will usually happen during the peak growing period between December and March. Once affected, the yellow leaves don’t recover. In the worst cases the stalks become rubbery. That tallies with what growers have
seen. YCS will rear its head when there’s been rain after an extended dry spell. On my farm I have seen too that there is no rhyme or reason as to why one block or area is heavily impacted and another one nearby, just across a headland, is not. From the SRA research project, the best advice to combatting YCS at the moment is to reduce stress on the sugarcane plants. As growers, we are always trying to reduce stress on our crop because when it is healthy, it grows. So, I understand growers may feel disappointed by the outcome of the research project. We all like answers and a quick fix. This time, unfortunately, they are not available. I’m not losing heart. Science constantly develops, new people come up with new ideas and new options can be tried. It took researchers more than 80 years to identify the cause of chlorotic streak disease, which first appeared in 1929
and is one of the most common diseases in the Australian sugarcane industry. Only in recent times was the DNA of a water-borne organism that spreads it identified. For this reason, research into YCS must continue beyond the end of this project. SRA says it will continue to invest in YCS and this is critical. We need a form of active, ongoing monitoring and a plan be ready to ramp up research again should anything change. As with chlorotic streak, just because the cause can’t be found now, doesn’t mean that it won’t be discoverable in the future or that the current level of YCS across the industry won’t change. So, it is important that growers stay vigilant and on the lookout for YCS symptoms. In the meantime we are left with our questions: What causes Yellow Canopy Syndrome? How do we stop it? And the hope that the future holds the key.
