Farmers pin hopes on GE grass

By Kathy Cogo
Tuesday, 14/10/2008
Would you buy milk labelled as having a genetically engineered product?Farmers are considering growing a genetically engineered grass in future which reduces the amount of methane a cow produces. A collaboration between Australian scientists and a New Zealand stock and station company is researching a grass which is hoped to maintain production levels at the same time as reducing greenhouse gas emissions.Researchers have found that the amount of methane a cow produces depends on what they eat.Lachlan McKenzie from Federated Farmers of New Zealand explains why scientists are developing a high sugar grass. "Methane is the bi-product of protein, the break down of protein and so if you have a higher sugar content in your pasture relative to the protein then the animal can use that protein rather than having to break it down for energy use." Mr McKenzie says as a result the grass should produce a more productive cow. He says they might have little choice but to grow GE grass in future. "Politicians in their wisdom have certainly indicated on both sides of the Tasman that they want to decrease the emissions of greenhouse gases from agricultural land ... so that's why the pressure's on for the researchers to actually come up with solutions for the regulations that are coming in." Are they worried about trying to sell milk that derives from genetically engineered grass? No. Mr McKenzie thinks consumers are more pragmatic and accepting in their attitudes towards GE food.
In this report: Lachlan McKenzie, dairy representative, Federated Farmers of New Zealand

Lowering trade barriers will ease world hunger

By Will Ockenden
Thursday, 16/10/2008
Australian farm groups say lowering international trade barriers is the best way to ensure global food security.Today's World Food Day, an annual event promoted by the United Nation's Food and Agriculture organisation. The focus this year is global food security. As financial turmoil becomes the major focus for politicians, there are warnings that food security remains an critical issue.Earlier this year, there were riots in Indonesia, Haiti and the Philippines as wheat and rice prices more than doubled. Mick Keogh, from the Australian Farm Institute, said there'd be a lot fewer hungry people in the world if agricultural trade was opened up. "The balance between demand and supply is tipping back towards increased demand, which hasn't been the case for the last 50 years," he said. "I think that's going to put pressure on governments to recognise the need to free up agricultural trade, and in that way to increase the flow of food and food supplies globally."At a busy inner-city Melbourne supermarket shoppers are buying food for dinner. Shopper Cameron Wolf said while food prices in Australia have increased, at least it's available. "I think it's one of the things we take for granted. It's hard to say weather we appreciate what we've got or the fact that the country we live in runs itself to provide markets for food."Shortages of rice are now common in many parts of the world, but that only hit home in Australia when supermarkets put limits on how much rice could be bought per person.Dr Beth Woods chairs the International Rice Research Institute. She said the rising price of food has caused the most pain for poor people in third world countries. "Some countries have provided additional payments to poor people, others have released government stores of food. Some of those are measures you wouldn't want to see in the long term, but in the short term governments should see it as a number one priority to ensure their people have food."
In this report: Director of the Australian Farm Institute Mick Keogh;Chair of the International Rice Research Institute Dr Beth WoodsSupermarket shopper Cameron Wolf

Financial crisis hits dairy markets

By Sally Dakis
Friday, 17/10/2008
Dairyfarmers have been warned to expect more volatility in dairy prices as a result of the global financial crisis.Dairy commodities have been cut by 20 per cent over the past few months, and Dairy Australia is predicting more uncertainty in the market.Dairy Australia's manager of Strategy and Knowledge Joanne Bills says the crisis is having an impact on some of Australia's key dairy export markets in Asia."Already over the last couple of months commodity prices have dropped quite sharply, around 20 per cent on average, in particular milk powders have been under a fair bit of pressure" she said."We're probably expecting that those prices will continue to be volatile, it's a very tight supply and demand situation still, but we are seeing some signs of demand softening and the possibility that we will have more supply to the world market. So perhaps a bit more weakness in those commodity prices to come".But Ms Bills says Dairy Australia is unable to quantify the magnitude of further falls."It is really difficult to predict at this stage, they have fallen very sharply in the last couple of months, we hope we don't continue to experience falls like that. We feel that there might be some more downward pressure on milk powders because of the activity of the US and the European Union, and the supply that's coming on stream from South America and New Zealand.""We think that butter and cheese has probably got a bit more resilience in terms of pricing for those commodities."In spite of this outlook though, Joanne Bills says dairy farmer confidence in the industry remains strong, with historically high farm gate prices, and farmers adopting a medium to long term outlook in the industry.
In this report: Joanne Bills, Dairy Australia's manager of Strategy and Knowledge

Frost losses at 40 per cent for some growers

By Cameron Wilson
Friday, 24/10/2008
Frost has destroyed up to 40 per cent of fruit crops for some growers worst hit by the drop in temperature earlier in the week.Temperatures dropped to well below zero in the Midlands, Derwent Valley, Coal River Valley and Huon Valley on Wednesday night and Thursday morning this week, at a time when cherries, apples, apricots and wine grapes are highly vulnerable to frost damage.After initial assessment it was thought that most growers has escaped serious damage, but Ken Bell from fruit marketers TopQual says those orchards that have been hit are now reporting extensive damage."The Derwent Valley is probably showing on some orchards there, (but) not all orchards, some growers had some fairly extensive frost protection in place and have been able to minimise the damage but on some other orchards there cold be up to 40 per cent (crop loss)."Around the Richmond area seems to be a little bit more damaged than other areas in the Coal River, Richmond is showing around about 40 per cent damage as well and there could be some damage even in the apricots out there."
In this report: Ken Bell, managing director TopQual

Nickel market tarnished by credit crunch

Report: Babs McHugh
A year ago, it was being called the 'new gold', but now the price of nickel has plummeted so low, it's costing more to produce than it's worth.Nickel is used in quality stainless steel.From a high of US$50,000 a tonne 18 months ago, it's now worth one fifth of that.Carey Smith, from Alto Capital, says nickel is another casualty of the global credit turmoil."Nickel's been caught up in the whole commodity cycle, and if you look at all the coppers and the zincs and the leads, they've fallen just as much basically, but nickel's fallen a bit further than most," he says."With the credit crisis in the US, in Europe and the UK, people just need money. They'll sell anything at any price."

Grain growers counting cost of recent frost

By Cameron Wilson
Monday, 27/10/2008
As midday temperatures peak today in the mid 20's, spare a thought for midlands grain growers who're taking stock of barley and canola crops that have been badly hit by frost.The extent of the frost damage to broad acre cereals and oilseeds is only now emerging, after last Thursday's cold snap.Rural reporter Rosemary Grant says for some farmers this will now be the third years of failed crops."I've talked to one consultant this morning who's travelled from Tunbridge through (Cambell Town) and north as far as Evandale and into the Fingal Valley."Certainly in the low lying areas it's pretty extensive."I spoke to one farmer today who estimated that they've probably lost $1 million worth of crops just in their area."
In this report: Rose Grant, rural reporter

Scientists push for GM labelling

By Jane Bardon
Monday, 27/10/2008
State and Federal food regulation meeting recently in Adelaide are facing renewed calls for all genetically modified food to be labelled.Fifteen Australian and international scientists have written an open letter to the ministers, saying independent studies are raising more concerns about GM food.And the scientists want testing of GM food to be done in Australia.At the moment only GM food with altered protein, for example foods containing GM soy, have to be labelled in Australia.Other foods containing highly processed GM like canola oil, cottonseed oil and corn, and even GM potatoes don't have to be labelled.Professor Jack Heineman is a molecular biologist at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, and he says that has to change so consumers can choose."There is a growing number of independently derived studies that indicate the plausibility of harms that may have been overlooked, and certainly, could currently be overlooked using the types of studies that are available to our regulators now."Independent Australian food nutritionist Dr Rosemary Stanton says labelling is also needed because if health problems do arise with GM foods in future, nutritionists and scientists won't know where the problems have come from because they won't know which foods people have been eating contain Gm material.But the Chief Scientist at the national food regulator Food Standards Australia New Zealand Dr Paul Brent says the state and federal food ministers don't need to change labelling laws.In their letter to the food ministers, the scientists are also calling for an independent review of the safety assessment procedure for GM food.Rosemary Stanton agrees with them it's unacceptable that Food Standards doesn't do its own safety testing.It relies on tests done by the GM companies and peer reviews of that by food authorities in other countries.Paul Brent from Food Standards says its okay to rely on GM company data and international assessments of that."The US FDA and the Health Canada Food Directorate and the Japanese, and the European Food Safety Authority have all looked at the same data, and have all come up with the same independent conclusions that these GM foods are safe."The standard procedure all over the world for chemical and drugs and for foods is for industry to supply the data. This idea that it has to be independently tested is a furphy."The regulator also says in its recent consumer attitudes survey only one on percent of people were worried about eating GM.But Rosemary Stanton says if state and federal governments don't change the law and demand GM food testing by the regulator farmers will suffer.She thinks once the new GM canola crops being grown for the first time in some states start to enter the food chain consumers might start avoiding eating any canola to try not to eat GM.A spokeswoman for the Federal Government Parliamentary secretary for health, Jan McLucas says Australia's processes for assessing and labelling food are based on worlds best practice, and Food Standards is taking a very cautious approach.But GM labelling may be discussed at the meeting.
In this report: Professor Jack Heineman molecular biologist at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, Dr Paul Brent Chief Scientist Food Standards Australia New Zealand; Dr Rosemary Stanton nutritionist