In the news

The Institute was itself the topic of an article by Andrew Marshall in The Land, ‘Ag interest is big business for AFI.’

Surging interest in agriculture is translating into good business for the farm sector’s leading policy and issues ‘think tank’ the Australian Farm Institute (AFI).

‘For a lot of these companies and institutions we’re helping them have a closer connection with the industry without them needing to be in the agripolitical arena,’ Mr Keogh said. ‘They tend to genuinely see and think of their contribution to agriculture as a long-term involvement and they need to be fully prepared to handle what might happen next.’ (17/02/12)

Risk was the topic of the Autumn 2012 Farm Policy Journal which informed the Farm Weekly article ‘Growing only grain a major pain says AFI’ (15/03/12), The Land article ‘Grain’s rising volatility’ (21/03/12), and the Weekly Times article ‘Risks mount for wheat farmers’ (28/03/12). Also on the topic of risk, the Stock & Land article ‘Big positives for farmers: ABARES’ reported:

Australian Farm Institute executive director Mick Keogh told Outlook 2012 that agriculture was not only Australia’s most volatile business, but agriculture in Australia rated as second only to Uruguay in its risk rating based on farm production output. He said while grain croppers had led the rise in the past decade of borrowing activity, partly because of attractive gross margins for grain production specialists, he doubted if enough attention was paid to gross margins per hectare. (12/03/12)

Leslie White quoted Institute staff in his Weekly Times article, ‘Farmers losing voice in Canberra’.

[I]f donations did not influence policy, then ‘why are they made? The agriculture sector is not in the hunt when it comes to those sorts of numbers and that sort of influence. Public funding of campaigns acts as a buffer and removes some incentive to completely sell out to highly commercial lobbying organisations.’ (29/03/12)

Out and about

Recently the Institute’s Executive Director, Mick Keogh, has spoken at:

• AARES Conference, Perth
• GRDC Northern Updates: Coolah, Coonamble and Nyngan, NSW
• Fisheries Research and Development Corporation and Queensland Seafood Industry Association Conference, Brisbane
• ABARES Outlook Conference, Canberra
• The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia Public Practitioners Conferences: Hunter Valley, NSW; Gold Coast, Queensland; and Torquay, Victoria
• Marcus Oldham College Carbon Farming Initiative Forum, Geelong, Victoria
• Namoi Catchment Management Authority Seminars: Bendemeer, Mullaley and Wee Waa, NSW
• Future Farming Jamberoo 2012, Dapto, NSW
• National Council of Wool Selling Brokers of Australia Board, Yennora, NSW
• Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Reducing Emissions from Livestock Research Program, Armidale, NSW
• National Natural Resource Management Knowledge Conference, Adelaide
• Victorian Farmers Federation Annual Conference, Bendigo, Victoria
• Young Country Club, Young, NSW

Annual Agriculture Roundtable Conference

Marriott Hotel, Brisbane
13 & 14 November 2012

Each year the Australian Farm Institute convenes a national conference to bring together farm and agribusiness leaders to consider and discuss some of the strategic policy issues of importance for agriculture.

More information will be made available on www.farminstitute.org.au