This past week members of the SFS team have attended the annual GRDC updates in Bendigo and Skipton. The updates are a great opportunity for SFS to learn about other research and developments in the industry, keep up to date with new findings and networking with producers and industry.

Some highlights from the Bendigo update include Cam Nicholson’s keynote presentation around greenhouse gas emissions on farm. Some key take aways from this presentation included the focus on starting to collect data now that will assist growers in calculating their emissions intensity and ultimately use these calculations to access higher value markets.

The theme of greenhouse gas emissions linked to the other presentations on the day with Helen Suter from the University of Melbourne delving into the effectiveness of enhanced efficiency fertilisers and their role in reducing emissions in the cropping industry as well as Roger Armstrong, Agriculture Victoria, discussing how to improve soil carbon.

Another highlight was the cereal disease resistance update from Hari Dadu from Agriculture Victoria. The key message from Hari’s update was that variety selection among other management factors in a season such as 2024 could slow resistance development and better disease control.

A key theme on the second day was around new developments in technology within the industry and what potential value they could provide. Johnathan Richetti from CSIRO explained the role of artificial intelligence in the grain industry and its’ potential. The main benefits outlined where its ability to analyse data and enhance decision-making on farm, however noting that it is still in the early stages and on-farm experimentation would be key moving forward. Tom Wolf from Agrimetrix research and training in Canada presented on the developments in pesticide applications from a Canadian perspective and what we can learn from their experiences.

The Skipton update covered topics of interest in the South-West region that included an update on climate drivers from Dale Grey, Agriculture Victoria, and opportunities for integrated pest management strategies and beneficial insects from Lilia Jenkins, CESAR. A key takeaway from Lilia was avoiding broad spectrum insecticides to protect the beneficial insects as apart of integrated pest management.

Overall, the updates where a great opportunity for staff to reflect with others in the industry on findings from the previous season, with a view of looking towards 2025 and building on what was learned.