This Month
Floods, heavy rain put squeeze on mango, sugarcane crops
The rain appears to be easing from severe floods in North Queensland, but some lingering concerns remain with agriculture.
- Liam Walsh
Rinehart to claim Australia’s truffle farming crown
Australia’s iron ore and cattle queen, Gina Rinehart, is well on her way to becoming the biggest truffle grower, and is looking to add the delicacy to menus that already feature her wagyu beef.
- Brad Thompson
Murray Cod Australia throws out a line to hook $400m fund
That would dwarf the company’s current market capitalisation of about $107 million and be used to fund infrastructure development and holding water rights.
- Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport
AACo made manager a whistleblower, then retrenched him a month later
Beef giant AACo maintains the job loss was simply due to a restructure. But a dispute has emerged about the timing.
- Liam Walsh
November
Buying your steak direct from paddock to plate
These food companies are bypassing retailers altogether and selling fresh produce direct to consumers.
- Nina Hendy
GrainCorp to pay special dividend, buy back shares
Undaunted by the onset of El Nino, GrainCorp will pay a special dividend and buy back shares as it looks to Western Australia for a big agri-energy investment.
- Brad Thompson
- Opinion
- Opinion
The farm revolution that can help reduce emissions
Agriculture is receiving attention as part of the new fervour for valuing “natural capital”, but not enough focus has been on how to keep farmland productive while cutting emissions.
- Jennifer Hewett
September
‘Farmers are spooked’: Why no one wants to buy sheep
Livestock prices are crashing as supply and demand dynamics pull the rug out from under the industry. And there could be more pain to come.
- Brad Thompson
Sheep prices plunge to $1 a head as farmers flood market
Farmers are scrambling to sell before summer as Australia’s sheep flock and breeding ewe numbers hit their highest level since 2007.
- Brad Thompson
GrainCorp boss has no fear of El Nino as farmers count down to harvest
GrainCorp boss Robert Spurway says the company can’t control the weather but is ready to respond to whatever comes its way.
- Brad Thompson
Farm output to shrink by $12b as El Niño strikes
Drier conditions and lower global commodity prices are predicted to push the value of agricultural output down by 14 per cent this financial year.
- Michael Read
July
What Robert Costa thinks of $1.6b takeover offer
The co-founder of Costa Group sees spinning off part of Australia’s biggest horticulture business as a smart option, amid a $1.6 billion private equity approach.
- Brad Thompson
Costa shares surge on back of $1.6b takeover offer
Costa Group confirmed a takeover offer from New York private equity firm Paine Schwartz Partners.
- Updated
- Brad Thompson
June
Stokes project puts new Aboriginal heritage laws to the test
New WA Premier Roger Cook is giving ground on controversial new Aboriginal heritage laws in the face of criticism from farmers and the resources industry.
- Brad Thompson
- Exclusive
- Funding
Rich Lister helps take robotic farm’s funding to $98m
Stacked Farms has now raised close to $100 million to build indoor vertical farms that automate the growing of lettuces, spinach and eventually strawberries, blueberries and tomatoes.
- Tess Bennett
Rinehart lashes WA heritage laws proposal amid miner, farming anger
The billionaire has also criticised plans to boost immigration, saying the federal government should instead ease restrictions on the hours worked by pensioners and students.
- Brad Thompson
Cut emissions by feeding seaweed to cattle? Yes, but there’s a catch
A 300-day trial has garnered mixed preliminary results: methane appears down, but the herd is not producing as much beef as usual.
- Liam Walsh
Grains mega-merger to reshape Australian farm exports
Global grain heavyweights Bunge and Glencore-backed Viterra will join forces in a move that gives them reach into Australia’s two biggest wheat states.
- Brad Thompson
Why Rich Lister Tony Denny swapped used cars for farming
Boosting food production through technology and smarter farming will be critical in decades to come, says the former car dealer with a $755 million fortune.
- Brad Thompson
Looming El Nino spells end to farmers’ record-breaking run
Australian farmers are set to deliver their third-biggest export return and sixth-biggest winter grain crop, even as the weather takes a turn for the worse.
- Brad Thompson
