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Rural Industries
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This is RIRDC's quarterly corporate newsletter distributed by mail to 2,500 researchers, industry, government, farmers, libraries and consultants. Contributions are welcome. Email us to be placed on the mailing list.
Editor: Eva Hickman, ph 02 6272 3186. email: evah@rirdc.gov.au
Are you having difficulty finding reliable information or getting objective advice on the new rural industries?
If so, then a new publication The New Rural Industries - A Handbook for Farmers and Investors, produced by the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC), may be worth a read.
This 600 page handbook, packed with 500 colour photos and diagrams, is a comprehensive introduction to almost 100 of Australia’s ‘new rural industries’ for farmers, investors, for bank managers, farm advisers, students and others.
It addresses the most frequently asked questions about the market prospects, production-processing requirements, pest weed and disease control, the costs of production and the prospective returns for these new plant, animal and aquaculture industries.
It also lists the key success factors in the development of new industries, how to initiate your own market research and where to get advice or additional information.
Each chapter has been researched and written by highly regarded experts in each industry or product.
Ten chapters on the ‘new’ aquaculture industries have been co-sponsored by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation.
Key Contacts Listed
Each chapter also contains a list of the key references and key contacts, names, telephone, fax numbers and postal addresses for follow up information.
Managing Director Peter Core, said RIRDC commissioned the handbook in response to the many requests received by the Corporation each week for up to date, factual information on the smaller, emerging and new rural industries.
"We get lots of inquiries for factual information on new rural industries", he said. "Most people don’t know where to start looking. Even the experienced rural adviser asks us for information on many potential industries.
"The sources of objective information on the wide range of new industries is very diverse. We’ve brought them together in one handbook, which has been heavily in demand since its release in February".
View on Internet
You can view the whole document on the RIRDC homepage at http://www.rirdc.gov.au/handbook/contents.html in either html or in full PDF format
To order: Phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost: $40 plus $8 p&h.
There have been some major developments at RIRDC since our last newsletter.
We have a new Chair, Professor Beth Woods, whose extensive and highly relevant career is profiled at left. She brings a wealth of research and extension experience and a distinguished academic background to the Corporation.
Professor Woods succeeds Bob McCarthy who chaired our Board for three years with distinction. Bob will continue with his farming and consulting activities and we wish him the very best.
February saw the launch of our major 600 page compendium, The New Rural Industries - a Handbook for Farmers and Investors (see article on page 1).
Packed with lots of colour photographs, tables and graphs, it provides comprehensive information on nearly 100 of Australia’s new rural industries written by a wide range of experts and edited by Keith Hyde, a former managing director of RIRDC.
The book sells for the very reasonable price of $40. In addition, the full text is available free on our Internet site at http://www.rirdc.gov.au. The entire handbook, with photos and graphs, is also available free on the site in PDF (portable document format).
Another major launch since our last newsletter was The Australian Farmer’s Guide to the Internet produced with Farmwide Pty Ltd (see article at right).
Launched by the Federal Minister for Communication, Online Economy and the Arts, Senator the Hon. Richard Alston, the guide will help farmers to make the most of the Internet by helping them to understand its fundamentals and the kinds of services they can find there.
At RIRDC, we are aware of how information technology is changing peoples’ lives, particularly in regional Australia, where information is not readily available and we are always looking for opportunities to use new communications. The Guide to the Internet is one example.
Another is the addition to our Internet site of our free ‘Short Reports’- comprehensive summaries of full research work. There are already more than 20 short reports on widely diverse subjects.
We will add new reports as they are published, so keep an eye on the "What’s New" page of our Web site at http//www.rirdc.gov.au.
The new Chair of RIRDC, Professor Beth Woods, brings a solid background in agribusiness, agriculture, research and extension processes.
Appointed to RIRDC in late December 1997, she is also Foundation Professor of Agribusiness at the University of Queensland, Gatton College.
Announcing her appointment, the Minister for Primary Industries and Energy, John Anderson, said Professor Woods had significant knowledge and experience, with a special interest in northern Australia and the Asian region.
"RIRDC will indeed benefit from her abilities, as it has from the efforts of the previous chairman, Mr Bob McCarthy," the Minister said. "I would like to personally thank Mr McCarthy for his valuable contribution to the Corporation and the rural industry in general."
Professor Woods is a former Rhodes Scholar and in 1991 was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for services to primary industries.
Her formal academic background is impressive, with a Bachelor of Agricultural Science with first class honours from University of Queensland and a Doctorate from Oxford University.
Professor Woods has had considerable experience in extension and the management of research and extension activities, with a strong focus on extension leadership and management.
Her other strong professional interests and activities have centred on:
In 1996, Professor Woods took part in a consultancy project for the Minister of Primary Industries to investigate future directions for service delivery to primary industries in Queensland.
Finding everything from boots to birds, feedlot steers to farm machinery, weather forecasts to weed identification kits, is now quicker and easier with the help of a new very popular farmer-friendly Internet guide.
The Australian Farmer’s Guide to the Internet has been designed and written especially for farmers to help them make the most of the Internet.
The Guide, commissioned by RIRDC and produced in conjunction with Farmwide Pty Ltd, contains information on how to connect to the Internet, how to choose an Internet Service Provider, and how to use email, newsgroups, chat, mailing lists and other features of the Internet.
Tips to maximise the speed and efficiency of the Internet, which is especially important for rural and remote users with poor connections or high access charges, are also included.
Electronic Street Directory
The Guide also features an extensive directory of over 250 Australian and overseas agriculture-related sites - a virtual ‘street directory to an electronic city’ (see right column for some examples).
The directory includes reviews of the web sites for farm organisations, weather, commodity prices, technical production issues, news, government servers, education services, financial services, the environment, online trading, advertising and classifieds and some overseas sites.
A CD ROM, which accompanies the book, contains the Telstra Big Pond and Ozemail Internet starter kits and a range of Internet software, including anti-virus and web publishing shareware.
RIRDC Managing Director, Mr Peter Core, said "The Internet is dramatically changing the way we, as individuals, communities, and government interact. But it’s not all plain sailing".
"As an R&D funding agency, we know the vital importance of making research work. That takes a lot of ingredients but one of them is access to information.
"Unfortunately, there’s such a wide range of material available on the Internet that it can be rather daunting for beginners, and makes searching for specific information time consuming and costly.
"It’s in that context that we’ve invested in the online agenda and joined forces with Farmwide to produce the Australian Farmer’s Guide to the Internet", he said.
Research contact: Rosie Simpson, Farmwide, ph 02 6273 6395. Or visit their website: www.farmwide.com.au/farmersguide.
To order: Phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost: $25 plus $8 p&h.
Australian Women in Agriculture
For more useful websites, visit RIRDC’s links directory.
A new research report points the way to better marketing and expansion of Australia’s fledgling emu products industry.
Researchers Paul Frapple, Peter O’Malley, John Snowden and Ruth Hagan sought to help the industry maintain its growth through successful processing, product development and marketing.
Their work focused on the industry in Western Australia and examined how costs could be cut, particularly in de-feathering and skinning, and how to eliminate skin and meat stress during transport.
At the time of the study, the products from an emu aged 50-60 weeks of marketable weight were worth about $400.
"Developments in emu processing and marketing have not kept pace with production. The industry was faced with the difficult task of positioning three emu products - oil, meat and skin - on world markets that knew virtually nothing about them," according to Peter O’Malley.
Nutritional Meat
"However, when we did a nutritional analysis of emu meat, we found that it was low in fat and cholesterol and extremely high in iron.
"Another study showed that emu meat was acceptable to consumers in WA. In fact, 90 per cent of shoppers at an in-store tasting in Perth said the meat was as good, or better than, the beef grilling steak they were buying at the time!"
Feather Removal
Feather removal cost producers about $6 to $10 a bird and they needed to do it in a cost-effective way without damaging the skin.
"We found that scalding 60-week or older birds at 60 degrees Celsius for one or two minutes made plucking easier, without any detrimental effect on the leather. But it made the skin harder to remove," Mr O’Malley said.
The researchers also applied wet-plucking technology to emus in a commercial poultry-processing establishment and passed them through a pig de-hairing machine. But they concluded the machines would need modifications to achieve commercially acceptable results.
Stock-Crate Heights
The study evaluated stock-crate designs and found that reducing the ceiling height of crates to 1.4 metres had no impact on skin quality.
The results are reported in the publication Emu Processing and Product Development.
Research contact: Peter O’Malley, phone 09 368 3550.
To order: Phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost: $10 plus $6 p&h.
A report on the missed opportunities of women in Australian agriculture has called for a "charter of organisational change" to boost diversity in farm business management.
The charter is just one of many major strategies urged to redress the imbalance in the bush, which sees women contributing nearly half of the work, but only 20 per cent of them climbing to decision maker rank.
According to the 2 volume report Missed Opportunities: Harnessing the Potential of Women in Australian Agriculture, published in February, more than 70,000 women define themselves as farmers or farm managers.
The researchers, Jane Elix, Judy Lambert and Jenny Gordon from the Centre for International Economics and others, spoke to a wide range of players in the agriculture and resources management sectors.
Barriers to Progress
Women spoke of a variety of barriers to their progress in agricultural management. While most barriers were seen as entrenched attitudes and organisational biases, legal issues also were a problem.
One woman said: "My name is not on the title, even though I have sweated for 20 years on the property, so although we have very active discussions, (my husband) has the final say!"
While some individuals had made progress, one participant felt that "women have gained the right to work longer hours!".
Other problems women encountered were:
Solution - Diversification
The major solution they saw - in line with international best practice - was to take a range of steps aimed at diversifying management across the agricultural sector (an issue also urged by the 1995 Karpin Report).
"It is therefore vitally important to the future of the agricultural and pastoral sector that it becomes a leader in building diversity in management, as part of the process of revitalizing the sector and its international competitiveness," the researchers concluded.
"Capitalising on the talents of diversity involves half of our population - women - and we must also utilise the skills of our multicultural society."
Research contact: Jane Elix and Judy Lambert, phone 02 9948 7862 or 02 9332 3913.
To order: Phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost: $30 plus $8 p&h. A free ‘short report’ is also available from RIRDC here.
The market for medicinal herbs in Australia is growing at a phenomenal rate, with most manufacturers growing by at least 25 per cent a year.
Global retail sales for herbal remedies were estimated at about $10 billion for 1997, with growth estimated to average 15 per cent.
The growing interest in medicinal herbs and plant-based pharmaceuticals and the opportunities they present for diversifying farm businesses, import substitution and export, prompted RIRDC to hold a workshop to seek an industry-driven view of where R&D priorities should be focused.
Organic farmers growing medicinal herbs in Australia identified weed control as a major problem. They said there was a pressing need for equipment to control weeds.
Opportunities for the pharmaceutical plant-extract industry were in niche marketing, to avoid competing directly with big multinational pharmaceutical companies.
The workshop agreed that if Australia was to become an international marketer of high-quality medicinal herbs, it would need to have independent laboratories able to certify the quality of crops and possibly also of processed products.
The proceedings are available in the RIRDC report Medicinal Herbs and Pharmaceutical Plant Extracts - R&D Opportunities.
Research contact: Professor Ron Wills, workshop organiser, University of Newcastle, phone 02 4348 4140.
To order: Phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost: $10 plus $6 p&h
The Australian deer industry has come of age, according to leading deer industry researcher, Mr Chris Tuckwell.
It has an established infrastructure, livestock priced at commercially realistic prices and developed markets in Australia and overseas.
"The industry is ready for a significant expansion in Australia. The infrastructure exists, the only factor missing is people committed to the industry," Mr Tuckwell said.
"The industry has a bright long term future based on existing and developing markets for its principal commodities."
"Australian exporters not only have access to well established European venison markets that most international deer industries target, but also to South East Asian markets that preferentially contract with Australia," he said.
Mr Tuckwell said the Australian product soon would get another boost with the setting up of an industry quality assurance program to guarantee the quality of all industry products offered to clients.
He said anyone considering entering the industry, or providing finance for industry development, should read the first of the two new deer industry manuals just published by RIRDC, Australian Deer Industry Manual: Part 1 - Investment and Economics and Part 2 - Fencing and Handling Yards.
These are part of a modular manual designed to help people objectively assess the deer industry and its future.
Research contact: Chris Tuckwell, phone 08 8523 3500.
To order: phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost: $20 each, plus $6 p&h.
Consumer awareness of the health benefits of olive oil is helping to boost the Australian olive industry.
The industry is also likely to benefit from increased consumption of olive oil as people become more cuisine-educated.
These are among key factors that researchers have identified on the market potential for the development of an olive industry in Australia.
Expanding olive production
"An increasing number of olive groves have been established in Australia - partially driven by the increased value of imports of olive products from $30 million in 1988 to $115 million in 1996," Mr McEvoy said.
In 1996, olive-oil imports accounted for about $94.5 million and table olives about $20.5 million. Exports of olive products from Australia totaled $1.25 million in 1996, mainly to the Asia-Pacific region, much of which were actually re-imports.
The report estimates that by the new millenium there will be more than 1.5 million olive trees in full production in Australia.
Mr McEvoy sees potential for export to Asia, particularly in light of increasing imports of olive oil into Japan and Thailand and preserved olives into China, Japan and Hong Kong.
He recommended implementing promotional policies to educate consumers on how to use each type of olive oil.
Australian brands
"But the absence of established loyalty for any particular brand of imported products, provides an opportunity for Australian brands", he said.
Economies of scale resulting in lower unit costs could be achieved if the olive industry were to operate in a more cohesive and unified way in production, processing, distribution, marketing, quality-assurance measures and product-branding strategies.
The findings are detailed in the report Potential for Establishing an Olive Industry in Australia written for RIRDC by Denis McEvoy of the Queensland Department of Primary Industries.
Research contact: Denis McEvoy, phone 07 468 81251.
To order: Phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost is $10 plus $6 p&h.
The Corporation is very pleased to announce the appointment of 8 new scholarships across its research programs in the past few months.
We wish the following students a successful and beneficial period of study:
Belinda Chung
(University of New South Wales)
Belinda is developing a full defined mixture of microorganisms capable of preventing the colonisation of meat chickens by enteropathogens. This would markedly reduce the significance of poultry as a vehicle of transmission of this pathogens, thus preventing major financial losses for the industry. (Due Dec 2000)
Matthew Rudd
(CSIRO Australian Animal Health)
Matthew is identifying virulence determinants of infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV). Clear identification would enable rapid implementation of appropriate disease control measures. (Due Dec 2000)
Louise Silvers
(Australian National University)
Louise is examining the biological basis of host specificity of myxoma virus strains from North and South America and from Australia in different leporid species at both the cellular and molecular level. This has the potential to reduce costs of pest control, reduce environmental degradation and decrease grazing competition. (Due Dec 2000)
David Witcombe
(University of Technology, Sydney)
David is looking at producing and characterising recombinant antigens of eimeria and their potential use in a maternally-delivered vaccine against poultry coccidiosis - which costs the industry over $1 billion per year. Such a vaccine would allow reduced use of chemotherapy, thereby significantly reducing costs, and satisfying consumer demand for residue-free meat. (Due Feb 2001)
Ron Newman
(University of Sydney)
Ron is manipulating lean tissue deposition by altering the sensitivity of tissues to the metabolic hormones. This would lead to leaner broilers by developing a feed technology that results in the more efficient use of dietary nutrients for protein synthesis and a better regulation of feed intake. (Due Dec 1999)
Anne Morgan
(University of Adelaide)
Anne is developing Acacia baileyana and A Baileyana variety Purpurea for cutfoliage and cut flowers. The success of acacias in Europe indicates the huge potential of this genus as an export crop for Australian producers, especially for markets like Japan. (Due Mar 1999)
Gemma Graham
(University of Western Sydney)
Gemma is examining the role of leptin in seasonal weight loss and puberty in emus. Developing leptin based technology will provide additional tools for optimising product quality and yield. (Due Dec 2000)
Greg Underwood
(Institute of Animal Health, UK)
Greg is studying tropism and transport of Marek’s disease virus during the initial phase of infection. This should contribute to competitiveness in the poultry industry world-wide by reducing morbidity and mortality caused by the disease and contribute to consumer protection by increasing product quality. (Due Dec 2000).
Researchers have developed the first comprehensive database of local information to help chicken producers feed their birds with more nutritional accuracy.
The compilation should be a useful resource for the poultry industry, especially nutritionists and those engaged in protein and amino acid research in poultry.
Unlike most of the information the industry has been using, the new database relies on local Australian conditions.
According to researcher Associate Professor Wayne Bryden, University of Sydney, while the existing information had served as a good guide, it was developed in North America and Europe under different conditions, and was therefore inadequate for accurate feed formulations.
Since 1994, Professor Bryden and a number of colleagues at the University’s Department of Animal Science, have been studying how much amino acid feedstuffs allow broiler chickens to absorb.
The research came out of the need in the Australian feed industry for information on different locally produced feedstuffs.
"These differences in digestibility can be effectively used as a tool to improve the precision of feed formulation," he said.
Their work, Digestible Amino Acids in Poultry Feedstuffs, has just been published by RIRDC.
In future editions the database will be expanded and will include information on more feedstuffs.
Research contact: Assoc Prof Wayne Bryden, phone 02 4655 0658.
To order: Phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost: $50 plus $8 p&h.
Developmental orthopaedic disease (DOD) is a major problem for all horse breeders.
The term DOD is used to describe a range of problems affecting the limbs of foals and includes abnormalities of development of bone, joints and tendons.
To consolidate information for the horse industry, RIRDC commissioned Dr. Janine Aldred, a postgraduate veterinarian at the University of Sydney Veterinary School, to provide up to date information on this important disease.
Her report covers:
To order: Phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost: $15 + $6 p&h.
Liability law in Australia seems to improve the safety of some products while stifling development of others, according to a study commissioned by RIRDC.
The study found that development of products which were not aimed at improving safety were more likely to suffer because of the extra cost associated with liability risk.
Dr Jenny Gordon, a senior research economist with the Centre for International Economics, and John Asker, an ANU student, wrote the study, The Impact of Liability Law on Research and Innovation, for RIRDC.
The study examines product liability law in Australia and addresses the question of the impact of the law on innovative activity - in the private sector and in public research and development organisations.
It discusses why basic research and development work is not likely to be seriously affected, how liability law seems to stimulate the level of safety of some products while stifling development of others, and the implications for insurance premiums.
"The project is a valuable first step in understanding the dimensions of the potential problems through a comprehensive survey of the issues involved," Dr Gordon said.
Research contact: Dr Jenny Gordon, phone 02 6248 6699.
To order: Phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost: $10 plus $6 p&h.
Advanced telecommunications offer rural Australians new ways of tapping into services traditionally only readily accessible in cities, according to a recent publication by the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation.
The Rural Guide to Telecommunications is a step-by-step guide, full of practical advice, designed to help people become involved in the development and application of electronic services in rural Australia.
It explains modern telecommunications technology and services such as the Internet in a simple, non-technical way with an emphasis on how they can be applied to benefit the rural community.
For instance - the remote delivery of training courses, online weather forecasts and market information, online financial services, and electronic livestock auctions.
It was written for RIRDC by the Centre for International Research on Communication and Information Technologies (CIRCIT).
Research contact: Marina Cavill, CIRCIT, phone 03 9248 1177.
To order: Phone RIRDC on 02 6272 4819 or fill in our online order form, print it out and fax it to us on 02 6272 5877. Cost: $15 plus $6 p&h.
Last updated: 17 March 1998
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http://www.rirdc.gov.au/nslaut98.html