Agribusiness

A La Niña event brings less rainfall for WA, but recent history is not an accurate guide as to what it will mean for the state’s crop output.

While many Australian exporters have tensely waited on news about trade sanctions from China, Fortescue Metals Group has inked deals with 12 partners.

Andrew Forrest’s Harvest Road has appointed former Mrs Mac’s pies boss Paul Slaughter to lead the agribusiness group as it plans for expansion.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has hosed down speculation China is planning further trade sanctions on Australian products.

Chinese trade strikes on Australian exports have spread to timber and barley, fuelling concerns about the increasingly perilous state of the diplomatic relationship.

Dry conditions in WA over spring and summer will add to the challenges facing wheat and sheep farmers.

The grain industry is sharpening its strategy with new markets, new products and a focus on supply chain costs.

CBH Group will reduce its board size and introduce maximum terms for directors, in a bid to improve its governance structure.

The state government is in negotiations to bring in a pool of international workers stationed in the Northern Territory as a solution to WA’s agricultural labour shortage.

Don’t let the science get ahead of market realities.

More Western Australian agribusinesses are set to receive high-speed broadband, with network providers to share in $7 million worth of grants.

WA agricultural researchers will explore emerging markets for bakery goods and noodles and rice made from oats in South East Asia after receiving $2 million in funding from the state government.

China’s decision to slaughter much of its pig herd due to African swine fever has led to a shortage of meat protein.

Australia’s primary producers are exploring new export markets and defending their reputation amid rising political tensions.

Darryl Hockey has been appointed chief executive of the Western Australian Fishing Industry Council Inc, replacing Alex Ogg who resigned in July.

Live export company Emanuel Exports has acquired a 15 per cent stake in agribusiness firm Alterra.

The worldwide economic fallout from COVID-19 is playing out across the agriculture sector in many ways.

The Court of Appeal has upheld a 2019 ruling that Quintis founder Frank Wilson was liable to repay a $14 million debt to its finance arm.

As the chief investment officer at Andrew Forrest’s private company, 34-year-old John Hartman oversees a very large, extraordinarily diverse and fast-growing portfolio.

Barley farmers will have to work harder to rebuild a share in a well-supported international market, with new competitors emerging.

Oil and gas player Shell is purchasing a Perth-based environmental services firm to help cut back on emissions, as well as further the company’s nature-based solutions business.

Brownes Dairy has moved back into the local cheddar cheese market, launching a WA-made range in an effort to appeal to consumers on this side of the Nullarbor.

Geraldton-based network company LogicIT has secured a $1 million state government grant to deliver high-speed broadband to the Mid-West and West Midland regions.

When farming activity started in the Ord River irrigation area in the 1960s, the initial focus was on cotton.

Andrew and Nicola Forrest-backed Tattarang will pay $30 million to acquire two major pastoral stations in the Kimberley, increasing its already extensive Harvest Road investments.

The state government and local farmers are pressing ahead with planning for a $30 million cotton gin in WA’s north despite a recent PwC study finding Katherine in the Northern Territory was a better location.

The co-operative that distributes water in the Ord River irrigation area has scored a big court victory over the state government, retaining its current water allocation to support the development of new cotton farms. The state government had wanted to slash the Ord Irrigation Co-operative’s annual water allocation by one third.

Plans to develop a 25 hectare composting facility north of Bindoon, potentially worth up to $25 million, are now in front of the federal environmental regulator for approval.

Property fund manager Primewest has purchased a national agricultural asset management company for $10 million, two days after establishing a $300 million fund targeting neighbourhood shopping centres.

Plans by Ingham’s Group to vacate prime real estate in Wanneroo have been delayed after property developer Harvis Capital won a Supreme Court ruling overturning development approval for the chicken producer's new site in Muchea.

Farm cooperative CBH Group has announced a review of its governance structure, shortly after one of its directors was narrowly voted off the board at a special general meeting and its long-serving chair was ousted.

Australian farmers are among the least subsidised in the world, while government support has shifted from manufacturing into the services industry in recent years, according to two new reports.