AgLife – Wednesday, August 28, 2024 edition

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Best’s Winery this week celebrates the 50th anniversary of its Great Western cellar door. History plays a vital role in the 158-year-old winery, which has some of the oldest vineyards in Australia, if not the world. Pictured are owners Ben and Nicole Thomson. Story, page 25. Picture: PAUL CARRACHER

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Four generations, five philosophies

Ararat’s fourth-generation design and manufacturing business Gason has weathered many a storm since beginning in 1946.

Changes in industry, economy and demand have seen the business adapt from motor trimming to fabricating farm machinery and wood heating products, and many things in between.

Managing director Wayne Gason said his grandfather Frank started the business when he moved from Geelong with his young family, seeking post World War II opportunities.

“Frank decided to grab his bicycle, buy a ticket, and travel to Stawell by train back in 1945,” he said.

“Up until that time, he’d been working at the Ford Motor Company in a number of different departments, but mainly as a motor body trimmer.

“At Stawell, he found there was already a motor body trimming business in town. It was doing quite a good job, and he thought he’d have less chance to succeed in Stawell than what he did in Ararat.”

Frank rented a garage shop at the corner of Tobin and View Point streets for 25 shillings a week.

“He would do anything from pram hoods, panel beating to upholstery,” Mr Gason said.

“It all changed one day when a farmer from Tatyoon, Adam Stewart, asked if he could make a cabin for

his Twin City tractor. Adam’s requirements were fairly simple, it just had to have comfort and protection from the weather. And this was pretty well unheard of on a tractor back in those days. But over the following years, all types of cabins were made.

“In 1952, Frank built a new factory in McGibbony Street, then in 1957 as a 15-year-old, my father started with Frank as an apprentice.”

In 1958, Gason was invited to build a cabin for a Minneapolis Moline GTA tractor, the first of tens of thousands to be produced across 40 years.

By the mid-1970s they were the market leaders.

By 1965, the premises in McGib-

bony Street was too small, and council suggested some land in Blake Street.

A 12,000-square-foot premises was built, along with an office block, which still stands today.

Gason diversified to design and manufacture Australia-specific agricultural machinery such as cultivation equipment and air seeders, and in the 1980s helped pioneer an Australian standard for rollover protection structures for tractors, and established an accredited test facility at the factory.

“In 1987, Gason became the fifthlargest car manufacturer in Australia, producing 100 vehicles over the following four years,” Mr Gason said.

“In 2006, we started doing sub-

STANDING STRONG:

Gason managing director Wayne Gason, front, with team members Colin Matthews, Aedan Bulger, Patrick Ampt, Brad Makovec, Riley Gason, Damian Garley, Karly Griffiths, Shannon McGrath and Jason Yole.

contract work for other companies – anything that requires cutting, folding, welding, powder coating, we’re interested in doing it.”

Mr Gason said there were five philosophies that have contributed to the business’s success.

“We only expand with our capacity to pay, not our capacity to borrow; we trade fairly and pay our financial commitments when they are due, and we expect our customers to do the same; we only build products that we believe will stand the test of time; we back the products we manufacture with after-sales spare parts; and we have a diversified company, currently working in three business streams,” he said.

Gason continues to fabricate farm machinery and wood-heating products, including the well-known Eureka and Jindara woodfire brands.

“Over the next three years we’ll be investing heavily in engineering, designing new products in the farm machinery and the heating sides of the business,” Mr Gason said.

“From a farming perspective, we’re about to release an active hitch planter bar, which will be released at field days in September.

“The engineering team is working on a new air seeder range, which is going to start at 30,000 litres. It will have sectional control, greater output capacity and higher blower performance, while still retaining a robust, reliable and easy to use machine that Gason is renowned for.

“One of the big things for us is to ensure that we bring apprentices through the business – for more than 50 years, that’s what we’ve done and still do today.

“People who are interested in doing an apprenticeship in metal fabrication can contact us.”

Mr Gason said there was a great business network and community in Ararat.

“Over the years we’ve been blessed to have very supportive people around us, we live in a very supportive community,” he said.

locations in Horsham and Ararat,

Celebration of cellar door concept

When stepping inside Best’s Wines cellar door at Great Western, it certainly feels like history is dripping from the walls.

While the winery this week celebrates 50 years of its cellar door, the building is no doubt reminiscent of an era much older than the 1970s.

And that’s partly because it is.

Originally Henry Best’s old horse stables from the 1870s, the cellar door was meticulously relocated, plank by plank, to its current location at the front of the winery.

At the time of opening, only a handful of wineries existed in Victoria, and very few were familiar with the cellar door concept.

But visitation was increasing to Best’s and the owners, the Thomson family, wanted a place to share their wines and sell directly to the public.

The stables fitted the brief, and were built to complement the historic underground cellars, dug by hand in the 1870s.

Managing director Ben Thomson remembers the stables in their original form – they were located near a peppercorn tree where his father Viv Thomson built a treehouse for him and his brother Hamish.

He recalls creating some mischief during the relocation project.

Each plank of the stables was numbered and taken apart piece by piece for careful reconstruction.

“They put 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D and us little buggers, as kids we went around and changed all the numbers so nothing would fit,” he said.

The 158-year-old winery is steeped in history, and the Thomson family has valued that since taking ownership – ensuring items such as Henry Best’s diary, tools and photographs were kept, restored if needed and put on display for the public to see.

Wandering through the cellar door, a highlight is seeing those historical items being treasured.

Mr Thomson said the 50-year milestone further cemented the longevity of the Best’s brand.

“People walk through the door and are immediately taken by the history and the story,” he said.

“Many have heard about the cellar door, but until you’ve visited, it’s hard to visualise how special this place is.

“It’s not shiny but oozes character, and the people who work here take great pride in sharing our stories with customers.”

Similar to how the cellar door opened 50 years ago, without ceremonial grandeur, the Thomson family hosted an intimate celebration with its 20 staff to mark the 50-year milestone.

Since its opening on August 26, 1974, Best’s cellar door continues to welcome visitors seven days a week, offering wine tastings, guided underground cellar tours, and special tastings, all steeped in rich history.

The wines

The vines at the winery date back to 1868, playing a vital role in the Thomson’s wines.

In fact, Mr Thomson said some of the oldest vines in the world were at Best’s.

“We think we’ve probably got the oldest Pinot Meunier in the world, the oldest Pinot Noir in the world, and probably the oldest Dolcetto in the world, because we’ve never had Phylloxera here,” he said.

“The Australian wine industry is not that old. And to be able to have some of the oldest varieties in the world here is pretty important.”

Phylloxera attacks the roots of vines and spread through Europe and America in the mid 19th century, destroy-

ing just under half of all vineyards in France within a few decades.

“The more I think about it, the nursery block out the front – and that’s not all the varieties – we’ve got varieties like grec rose, gamay, piccolo, all these, they could be the oldest known variety in Australia, and we’ve still got seven that are unknown,” he said.

“They’ve been DNA tested a number of years ago and they don’t know what they are.

“I would like to try and get a grant through the government or the historical society or something like that to do a proper replanting of it, out of our other vineyard where it’s out of the frost, it’s going to be well preserved, with plenty of water, and just keep the heritage of these original vines.”

Best’s direct to consumer manager Nicole Thomson, Ben’s wife, said the winery would also like to have some of the historic vines DNA tested again.

“Science has developed a lot since they were done so perhaps there is some new scientific way of identifying those ones,” she said.

The Thomsons agreed their older vines made for a more unique type of produce, describing older vines as having ‘their own personality’.

“It’s a bit like people. As you get older you get more character and tell more stories,” Mr Thomson said.

A new world of tough

“This is the way I describe it –young vines are still a bit dumb and thick and know it all. They think they’re spruicking this and that and then they’re knackered.

“But you get your old vines and they’ve just learnt to survive. They get older and you really can’t influence their flavours much when they’re 120, 140 ... you can’t really do much to them because their roots are down that far and they’ve had 150 haircuts.”

The industry

Mr Thomson said times were currently tough in much of the wine industry but he remained optimistic.

“For some strange reason, I feel quite positive about the future,” he said.

“I don’t know why – I’ve got no crystal ball – but I think if you keep trying hard and try new stuff ... we’ve just made two white wines out of Shiraz.

“It’s something different. It was our first year last year, this year we’re making a lot more of it because it seems to have worked.”

Mrs Thomson said a new variety they had introduced was the Blanc de Noir Cuvée.

“I describe it as like a Prosecco apple cider,” he said.

“We weren’t trying to make a French style, we weren’t trying to make a

Australian white bubbles, we weren’t trying to make a prosecco.

“We were trying to make something that’s really unique to us that’s made from a hundred per cent Shiraz grapes, but it’s just white.

“And it appealed to even the top people who love wine because it’s just refreshing.

“So we made four times as much this year, so it will go out further abroad, whereas we just kept it to cellar door.” A lack of rain this year is impacting vineyards, requiring winery owners to pay for water.

Another challenge is the way life has changed since the COVID pandemic.

“There’s a lot of five-star restaurants closing down. There’s a lot of places who are reducing their hours and also now putting a surcharge on weekends,” Mrs Thomson said.

“People who would normally go out and maybe have two bottles of wine or so, they would probably just go out once a week instead of three times a week, and they’d only buy the one bottle of wine.”

The Thomsons said another challenge was marketing the region as a wine destination.

“There’s a lot of people in Melbourne who’ve never come out of Melbourne,” Mrs Thomson said.

“They’ve never come to the Grampians, they go the other side.

“Grampians Tourism, working with the government and Visit Victoria in the last five years, the visitation here has grown because they’re really pushing the Grampians and to go wine tasting.”

The Thomsons said they would like to see more Victorians, including the State Government, local governments and businesses, supporting Victorian wineries.

“We should be going to our councillors and saying when you’ve got people coming, you should be buying local wines from your region and from Victoria, for events and gifts,” Mrs Thomson said.

“The same with Parliament – if the State Government is having a meeting or stocking its bar or hosting an event, they shouldn’t have any South Australian wine. It should be all Victorian.”

Father and son Viv and Ben Thomson

Feed is the target

I’vebeen around long enough to remember when China was a minor player in the wool market.

If my memory serves me correctly, in the 1980s the then Australian Wool Corporation began touting China as the next big thing for wool.

It was along the lines of – imagine if every person in China bought woolen socks.

Then, as now, I found it rather condescending and culturally inappropriate, but then, lo and behold, fast forward to now, and China is buying 80 per cent of our wool, and India is overtaking Europe as a key export market.

The grains industry has made a similar, though less momentous, prediction.

A delegation has been in Canberra to try to convince the Standing Committee on Agriculture that the industry needs government support to make the most of the emerging market for feed grains in southeast Asia.

We currently export in excess of 15 million tonnes of grain, most of it wheat, to Asia.

As with China, there is a growing middle class and the face of agriculture in Asia is changing. Large corporates are now investing in intensive livestock production and aquaculture and with that comes huge demand for feed grains.

In an interview with Country Today, Grain Trade Australia chief executive Pat O’Shannassy said the feed grain consumption in southeast Asia was already enormous.

“It’s got to about 70 million tonnes in just the last few years. We think there’s enormous growth there as those markets move to more protein in their diets. A lot of it is sourced from domestic corn producers, but what we see is

Country Today with

that, as demand increases, their capacity to meet that demand will diminish and that will open up opportunities for other sources of feed grain, such as Australia,” Mr O’Shannassy said.

The most grains with the most potential for export are wheat, barley and sorghum, depending on pricing.

There is a caveat though. Grain growers would be mistaken in thinking it’s a potential market for downgraded grain due to weather damage.

“One of the things we’ve done as an industry over the years is to convince our farmers that feed value is failure. What we need to do is turn that around and say that feed producers are looking for high-quality grains. They’re not looking for weather damaged grain. They are looking for high quality grain to improve their output,” Mr O’Shannassy said.

So the take-home message?

“From an Australian farmer’s point of view, we’ve got to move away from this concept of feed grain equals failure, to say that feed is the target market. For instance, some of the low protein wheats in the past few years have moved very readily into this market in the Philippines, Vietnam and others markets as well,” Mr O’Shannassy said.

Glenelg sale well supported

Organisers of the annual Glenelg Regional Merino Field Day declared this year’s sale a success, despite the season’s adverse conditions.

Field day president Warren Russell said the event was well-attended, with a good sale rate.

“It went quite well considering the season we’re having – how tough it’s been and how much money everyone has been spending on keeping sheep alive by buying feed,” he said.

“We ended up selling 93 of

104 rams, with the top sale being $4400 for a Gleneden horn ram. This year the average sale price was $1655.”

Mr Russell said this year’s ram sale followed much the same trend as previous years –last year 99 of 107 were sold, averaging $2439 and top-selling at $7000, twice; in 2022, 86 of 96 were sold, averaging $2230 and top-selling $7250; and in 2021, 90 of 94 were sold, with an average of $2541 and top-selling at $7500.

“Sheepvention dropped off this year, we seem to be the only seller in western Victoria – once there was Hamilton, Ballarat and Bendigo, now there’s only Bendigo and us.

“I think the fact that it’s been a grassroots, local event, has been its strength. It’s local breeders providing rams for local clients, and that’s why it’s so well supported.”

“We’ve a good group of young stud-breeders driving it forward, I think it’s gaining momentum – there’s more and more people wanting to join the group. It’s in a good position at the moment,” he said.

INSPECTION: Kevin Beaton of Coojah, left, and Stephan Millard, Byaduk, at Glenelg Regional Merino Field Day at Balmoral.
Picture: PAUL CARRACHER

ELDERS STUD STOCK

KANIVA,1pm

THUR 12TH FOREST SPRINGS MERINO RAM SALE JOEL JOEL, 1pm FRI 13TH SOHNIC MERINO RAM SALE MARNOO EAST, 1pm

THUR 19TH MARNOO GROUP – Inspection Day WALLALOO PARK / OAKBANK ON PROPERTY, 10-5pm

SUNNYDALE WHITE SUFFOLK RAM SALE RUPANYUP, 1pm

CURLEW MERINO RAMS – Inspection Day CHARAM WED 25TH OAKBANK MERINO AND POLL RAM SALE GRE GRE NORTH, 1pm

THUR 26TH WALLALOO PARK MERINO RAM SALE MARNOO, 1pm

THUR 26TH WESTLEIGH WHITE SUFFOLK RAM SALE LAKE WONGAN, 1.30pm O C T O B E R

MON 7TH CURLEW MERINO RAM SALE CHARAM, 1pm

WED 9TH MELROSE MERINO AND POLL MERINO SALE NURRABIEL, 1pm

THUR 10TH DETPA GROVE WHITE SUFFOLK SALE JEPARIT, 1pm

FRI 11TH GLENPAEN MERINO AND POLL MERINO SALE BRIMPAEN, 1pm

WED 16TH CONNEWARREN MERINO RAM SALE MORTLAKE, 1pm

THUR 17TH JACKSON FARMING BORDER LEICESTER & POLL DORSET RAM SALE MOYSTON, 1pm

FRI 18TH WEST WAIL WHITE SUFFOLK SALE HORSHAM, 1pm

FRI 18TH SOUTHERN VICTORIAL MERINO FIELD DAY ARARAT REG., 9am-4pm

TUES 22ND STUD PARK SOUTH MERINO RAM SALE WILLAURA, 1pm

National John Deere award finalists

Two

Horsham mechanics have been nominated for the annual John Deere Technician awards – Emmetts’ Nick Lattanzio and James Smart for Apprentice of the Year and Service Technician of the Year, respectively.

Horsham Emmetts training and apprenticeships co-ordinator Amber Peters said Emmetts had several nominations for the awards this year, which included employees from Australia and New Zealand.

“We have finalists in every category of the awards, all except for the construction and forestry,” she said.

“We have three in the apprenticeship group – we’ve got another two in South Australia, and they compete against each other as well as four others in the category, John Deere is very well represented.”

Mr Lattanzio, who is in his fourth year of his apprenticeship, did not set out to be a diesel mechanic.

“I went to university for six months and it wasn’t my kind of cup of tea, so I came back and worked around here,” he said.

“I did harvest on a farm and heard on the radio they were looking for someone here at Emmetts and I thought I’d give it a go.

“I put my name in, and sure enough I got it – it’s been fun ever since.”

Ms Peters said nominees were selected by a service manager, putting forward employees who have been outstanding in all aspects of their work, and who go above and beyond to support customers.

“We have so many finalists this year, we’ve had to book two tables – it’s very exciting. We’ve done incredibly well this year, we are so, so proud of these guys”

“I started my apprenticeship in 2007 at a John Deere dealer, before I came to Australia,” he said.

“I worked on a few farms and with a few different dealerships and was meant to go back to the UK, but I didn’t.”

Mr Smart, who has worked at Emmetts for about 18 months, said there was not much difference between equipment in the UK and in Australia.

“The tractors are generally bigger here. I worked in Western Australia on some of the biggest stuff you can probably get, but Emmetts has a good mix of small and big stuff,” he said.

Ms Peters said the awards would be presented in Queensland next week.

“Once nominated, the nominee has to do a written application, with case studies and diagnostics, for example, followed by an online test.”

Ms Peters described Mr Smart as

“The manager needs to believe they are the best of the best in the business,” she said.

Bee parasite detected

Agriculture Victoria confirmed last week Varroa mite had been detected for the first time in the state.

The infested hive was identified at a property in Nangiloc, near Mildura, during surveillance activities that are carried out each year during almond pollination.

A parasite of adult honeybees and honeybee brood, Varroa mite weakens and kills honeybee colonies. The parasites can also transmit honey bee viruses. It does not affect native bees.

A team of 12 Varroa development officers have been recruited in Victoria to provide guidance to beekeepers about how to manage the mite and appropriately use the chemical control options available.

There are also Varroa management training workshops occurring across Victoria for both commercial and recreational beekeepers, which

cover monitoring and threshold surveillance actions, integrated pest management techniques, record-keeping, and chemical treatments, including organic options.

Beekeepers in Victoria are urged to check their hives and to report suspected cases of Varroa mite to the Exotic Plant Pest Hotline on 1800 084 881.

All Victorian beekeepers are encouraged to record all hive movements and inspections, and the results of mite testing in BeeMAX.

Beekeepers with concerns can contact Victorian Varroa development officers by email at Victorian.VDO@agriculture.vic.gov.au or by calling 1800 958 485.

For more information and updates on the detection, and any further Victorian varroa mite detections, people can visit agriculture.vic.gov. au/varroa.

a ‘no-brainer’ nominee. He is in the running for Service Technician of the Year.

He has been in Australia for 12 years and Horsham for two, moving from North Yorkshire in the United Kingdom.

“The nominees have a week of intensive training and competing before a big gala awards night,” she said.

“We have so many finalists this year, we’ve had to book two tables – it’s very exciting. We’ve done incredibly well this year, we are so, so proud of these guys.”

ASSETS: Emmetts Horsham has two finalists in the John Deere national technician awards, James Smart, left, and Nick Lattanzio.
Picture: PAUL CARRACHER

Proudly supporting grassroots football, netball and umpiring throughout the region with our partnerships

Travel safely as you, your team-mates and supporters travel to-and-from your games Congratulations to all who have participated in 2024. Best wishes to all still participating in finals action.

Changing network

The National Farmers’ Federation has welcomed the delayed shutdown date of the 3G network, now set for October 28.

Telstra and Optus have launched a public safety awareness campaign to make sure people take action ahead of the shutdown.

It is the second extension by Telstra in regards to the closure of the 3G network.

National Farmers Federation, NFF, president David Jochinke said while people now had time to prepare, it was important they did not leave it to the last minute.

“This is not the time to take a ‘she’ll be right’ attitude. I urge people to check their devices urgently and make sure they are compatible with the 4G and 5G networks,” he said.

Beyond mobile phones, the NFF urged rural Australians to think about what other technologies might be using the 3G network, including ag tech such as livestock and dog trackers, weather stations, soil moisture probes, yield monitors and variable rate technology.

There are also security cameras, EFTPOS machines, medical monitors, 3G landlines, repeaters, antennas and electronic road signs.

“We can’t keep prolonging the inevitable. Let’s use this time wisely and then start focusing on how we move forward and address the systemic issues facing rural connectivity.”

Ongoing

Member for Mallee Anne Webster said she had called for Telstra and Optus to delay the 3G shutdown for the past four months because residents across her electorate were ‘stressed about not being able use health alert devices or farm technology that was 3Gdependent’.

“The elderly, farmers, motorists and communities need a guarantee that services will continue,” she said.

“As the Coalition has been highlighting for months, the government was too slow to act on the warning signs, and significant responsibility for the delay lies with the Communications Minister.”

Dr Webster said an IT expert told a Senate inquiry into the 3G shutdown that he wrote to the Communications Minister in June last year to warn about risks of 4G phones being unable to call triple zero. Optus was also highlighting

“If you don’t know whether your device runs on the 3G network, you must contact the manufacturer to find out. Make sure this is on the top of your priority list,” Mr Jochinke said.

problems to the government in July.

“The Senate inquiry report recommended the Communications Minister use her powers, if guarantees are not given of continuity of service for current 3G reliant devices, to force those guarantees to be given,” Dr Webster said.

“The question remains, will the minister use her powers and show strength so that regional Australians are not abandoned yet again by the Labor government? Why have they taken so long to act?”

National Rural Health Alliance

chief executive Susi Tegen also welcomed the news for rural, regional and remote communities as it gives more opportunity to ensure their health and wellbeing is not compromised.

“This is an acknowledgment that the voice of the seven-million people in rural, regional and remote Australia has been listened to, allowing more preparation and support where needed, in time for the changeover,” she said.

“While we welcome the decision to delay the shutdown, we urge the telecommunications industry to use this extra time to work with the Minister for Communications, the Hon Michelle Rowland MP, to ensure those without coverage are supported financially as well as from a digital literacy perspective.”

Pulse agronomy in spotlight

BCG’s Main Field Day, set to take place at Nullawil, north east of Birchip, on September 11, will showcase the latest advancements in pulse agronomy.

Leading experts, BCG research and extension officer Kelly Angel, Audrey Delahunty from Agriculture Victoria, Stuart Nagle from South Australian Research and Development Institute, and Jason Brand from Frontier Farming Systems, will present breakthroughs in pulse variety selection, disease management, and end-use strategies to enhance the role of pulses in farming systems.

A highlight of the day will be the pulse super session, where experts will discuss new vetch varieties entering the market. BCG is currently investigating the per-

formance of existing pulse varieties while also offering an exclusive preview of soon-to-be-released varieties.

With both vetch and pulse experts on hand, growers will have the opportunity to ask pressing questions about the management of these crops.

BCG’s Main Field Day offers the latest in local agronomic research to farmers, agronomists, and advisors.

In addition to pulse agronomy, the event will cover new cereal varieties, canola establishment, long coleoptile wheat, and disease management in wheat and barley. People can visit the BCG website, bcg. org.au/events for more information and to purchase tickets.

SPECIAL GUEST: BCG research and extension officer Kelly Angel will be one of the guest speakers at BCG’s Main Field Day on September 11.

College welcomes donation

Longerenong College has re-

ceived the donation of a worldclass chemical handling system for sprayers, from Burando Hill, an Australian distributor of agricultural farm equipment, parts and machinery.

Burando Hill Wangaratta manager Andrew Way said the donation of a Handler III was initiated by a former Longerenong College student.

“I’ve a nephew who graduated from Longy, and I mentioned to him that I’d like to get in front of the schools and be able to promote the safety of what Burando Hill is about,” he said.

“He told me the best thing to do would be to donate them a handler.

“I said get me a contact and I’ll get it started.”

The equipment addresses one of the biggest challenges in agricultural spraying – safely loading, mixing, and transferring crop protection products to the sprayer in as little time as possible, while minimising contact with the product.

The Handler III will provide an invaluable resource for Longerenong College students to learn with and will be used across agronomy and chemical training throughout both full-time and short course deliveries at the college.

Avian control

Avian influenza movements and restrictions have lifted for some birds near Terang and Meredith, after no further cases of high pathogenicity avian influenza have been detected in Victoria since June 24.

The housing requirement for poultry in the control areas have been lifted, while the restricted area around the infected Terang property has been reduced from a five-kilometre to a 1.5-kilometre radius. The control area at Terang has also been reduced from a 15-kilometre to a five-kilometre radius.

Control and restrictions in the Meredith area will remain the same.

Poultry farmers, backyard flock and bird owners are urged to continue to be vigilant and report any cases of unexplained bird deaths to the VicEmergency Hotline on 1800 226 226.

For more information, people can visit agriculture.vic.gov.au/avianflu.

Kaniva event

Picture: PAUL CARRACHER

DEMONSTRATION: Longerenong College students, front, Edward Davis, Jack Sapuppo and Edward Gooden; and back, Amity Smith, Charlotte Cain and Mackenzie Metcalf, with Skillinvest chief financial officer Jason Maybery, and Andrew Way and Simon Hill from Burando Hill, with a chemical mixer donated to the college. A demonstration of the Handler III followed.

Skillinvest and Longerenong College chief executive Darren Webster said the college was grateful for Burando Hill’s significant contribution and opening learning opportunities for their students.

experience is both safe and efficient,” he said.

“Burando Hill’s generous donation of the Handler III, a piece of worldclass, industry-standard equipment, not only enriches our resources but also ensures our students’ learning

“This contribution will undeniably enhance our students’ practical skills and knowledge.”

Burando Hill owner Simon Hill said he was pleased to provide Longerenong College students with the opportunity to gain hands-on experi-

ence using the Handler III. “Education needs to keep up with the evolution of farming and safety and efficiency plays a huge part,” he said.

“It’s important to keep students at the forefront, as they are the ones paving the way for the future.”

Kaniva-born Rhodes Scholar Kate Maddern will share her agricultural story at a Women’s Health Week event in Kaniva next week.

The event, Young Women in Ag, will also feature experiences and insights from a panel of Kaniva women who are involved in agriculture.

The event, at Little Guys Pizza from 6.30pm on September 5, costs $5 to attend. Meals are available.

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