FODDER, hay and silage may be the next big value add to the northern beef industry.
Set to speak at the annual Northern Australia Food Futures Conference in Darwin next week, Kununurra farmer, Robert Boshammer said he farms what he can make a dollar out of.
"At the moment chickpeas and maize, a bit of mungbeans, chia and a fair bit of hay,” he said.
Mr Boshammer said to be successful in northern Australia you needed to have a high value product.
Tickets are still available for a limited time at https://www.foodfuturesntfarmers.org.au
“Its a big area for beef, northern Australia, and I 'll be talking about growing fodder and growing hay,” he said.
“How you can increase the value of the beef industry, by targeting things like early weaning, holding and finishing.
“Moving cattle to feed rather then feed to cattle and seeing how we as farmers can integrate with the pastoral industry better.”
Mr Boshammer said adding value to the beef industry was a great opportunity.
“It's some of the cheapest grazing country in the world for five or six months of the year and some of the most expensive grazing country in the world for the other six months of the year.”
Mr Boshammer said in his own enterprise he has been predominately growing grasses.
"We are doing mainly fine Rhodes grass, under full irrigation, cutting every 35 days,” he said.
“One of our issues is we make very good hay during the season, but come closer to the wet season, because of the high humidity it is a lot harder to make the quality hay.
“So we are starting to look at doing big bale silage as we already have the hay gear.”
Mr Boshammer said he will also speak about his legume and cropping rotations and how they fit in a dual purpose hay scenario.
"I think it is a great time to get together and see what others are doing and learn a bit,” he said.
“It's a lot cheaper to learn by other peoples mistakes, then make them yourself.”
Mr Boshammer said the conference was important to the northern agricultural industry on a number of levels.
"We are fair way from anywhere, there are not a lot of growers in northern Australia,” he said.
"So you can sometimes feel a bit cut off from the world.
"It's great to get together and listen to each other, it's about getting information.”
Mr Boshammer said getting farmers, researchers, funders and government in the same room bought strength to the industry.
A new initiative for the 2018 conference is the opportunity to participate in the ANZ Farm Field Tour.
Organisers said the half-day tour will give participants the opportunity to visit and talk to, successful farmers growing mangoes, vegetables, barramundi, pineapples and other tropical fruits in the Darwin rural area.
The tour will be followed by an informal barbeque at Arnhem Fruits, a large mango packing shed.
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