Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 404 i Farms and Farm Machinery

Kubota will acquire automatic steering products manufacturer AgJunction in an all-cash deal, about a year after AgJunction’s Novariant subsidiary developed a modular automation system for the company. The purchase is valued at CAD$91 million (A$98 million) and involves a full buyout of AgJunction, which has its headquarters in the United States and which announced the closure of its Brisbane facilities in 2019. Despite the closure of its Brisbane facilities, AgJunction did start shipping autosteering technologies from its Wheelman product portfolio to Australia in August. Kubota says the purchase should strengthen its hand in the growing agricultural automation market, by providing it with access to over 200 patents and patents pending owned and licensed by AgJunction. These technologies are used by 30 of the world’s leading precision agriculture manufacturers and solution…

Case IH has revealed new major styling upgrades for its Puma tractor series, due to arrive in Australia this spring. The upgrades to the MY2021 Tier 5 Puma Series are the range’s first major changes in more than a decade, with its new hood featuring the latest Case IH family styling. The tractors have a longer wheelbase with horsepower ranging from 185–240 (138–179kW), depending on the model, and a 6.7-litre FPT Industrial six-cylinder engine, while still meeting Tier 5 emissions standards. The models are available with continuously variable transmission (CVT), which Case IH says helps to generate more power whilst still optimising fuel consumption. Changes to the transmission also help to improve acceleration and deceleration as well as contributing to better shuttle behaviour, drive pedal sensitivity, cruise control override, better…

More power and improvements to the intake, crop flow and wrapping have been added to Claas’ new Variant 400 variable-chamber round baler models. The models are the Variant 485, which produces bales at 0.9–1.8m diameter x 1.2m, and the Variant 460, which produces bales sized at 0.9–1.55m diameter x 1.2m. Changes to the rotor structure, which comprise four pointed stars arranged in a helix, mean it can turn a full 360 degrees – an improvement over the previous 180-degree range – before feeding the crop into the chamber. Claas Harvest Centre product manager – Greenline Blair McAlwee says the rotor achieves 6,000 cuts per minute, helping to ensure material is evenly distributed into the bale chamber to create uniformly-shaped bales. "The rotor rotates in the opposite direction to the four…

Claas will give easier access to the stripper bars and mechanically-driven canola knives on its range of Vario variable cutterbars designed for Claas Lexion combine harvesters as part of a series of upgrades. The new features, which also include a new reel drive and automatic reel height adjustment, will be fitted as standard on 13.8, 12.3 and 10.8 m models delivered to Australia from 2022 onwards. Claas Harvest Centre product manager for the Lexion Steve Reeves says the narrower reel drive and its hydraulic driveline will allow the Vario cutterbars to adjust by the full allowance of up to 70cm, even with canola knives fitted. Another measure to improve operator comfort and convenience is the hydraulic height adjustment of the intake auger, controlled by the CEBIS terminal inside the cabin.…

Geelong Classic Truck & Machinery Show – Breakwater Geelong plays host to one of the biggest and best displays of classic trucks, tractors, cars, machinery plus much more. As well as having a range of visiting clubs and displays, the event also showcases the Vintage Machinery Section’s own pavilion with a wide range of steam-powered machinery. WHEN: January 15-16, 2022 MORE INFO: www.classictruckandmachinery.com.au IDW Australia – Tatura Park Australia’s International Dairy Week is a forum to showcase the latest developments in Australian dairy cattle, farming practices, dairy knowledge, breeding and genetics, machinery, equipment and technology, environmental management and services. IDW is the place to be for all dairy farmers, breeders, producers, companies, organisations and others operating within the dairy industry. WHEN: January 16-20, 2022 MORE INFO: http://internationaldairyweek.com.au Eurobodalla Agricultural Show…

It’s unarguably well built and innovative and performs not only in in the paddock but is also easy to live with Having managed a trip to Canterbury for a visit to Euroagri prior to the lockdown, my focus was on checking out the German-made Lemken Karat 12. Bear with me, as it may be a little confusing, but there are two options of the machine here: the Karat 9 and Karat 12, and this has nothing to do with working width. The Lemken Karat 12 is the longer version, due to an additional row of legs. There are four rows on the Karat 12, and three rows of legs on the Lemken 9. Our test machine for the day was the six-metre version of the Karat 12. There’s only one…

Developed in Australia’s Hunter Valley for local conditions, Doyle Ag & Fabrication’s dual-purpose CD3001 culti drill offers conventional tillage and direct drilling in one compact package. Company director Kris Doyle says the dual-purpose machine is aimed at smaller landholders who find it difficult to justify the cost of two machines for both those purposes. The CD3001 can carry out direct seed drilling, placing seeds accurately into high organic and trash loads, while still maintaining what its manufacturer describes as “excellent seed-to-soil” contact. But with about 30 minutes of work, it can also be converted into a heavy-duty spring cultivator for all conventional cultivation requirements. Based on Doyle Ag’s HD spring tine cultivator, the CD3001 is 3.0m wide and is able to be handled by a 100hp (75kW) tractor. Its heavy-duty…

Managing bushfire risk, lessons learned from previous disasters and how technology is changing weather forecasting were among the discussion topics at Australasian Fire and Emergency Service Authorities Council’s (AFAC) annual conference. Held as a virtual event due to border closures, keynote speakers included well-known bushfire survivor and mindset coach Turia Pitt and former New South Wales Rural Fire Service commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons. AFAC’S conference included sessions held across three days and ran simultaneously with the Australian Disaster Resilience Conference and the Institution of Fire Engineers National Conference. Some of the highlights from three days of presentations included: Reidentifying when to prescribed burn The ideal prescribed burning windows, or ‘prescriptions’ as they are known, have not accurately represented all opportunities to burn. These were the findings of Country Fire Authority senior…

Western Australian lawyer, entrepreneur and social innovator Cara Peek has been crowned the AgriFutures Australia Rural Women’s Award winner for 2020. Peek was announced as the overall winner at one of seven individual awards ceremonies hosted across the country to recognise the excellence and achievements of rural women. Announced by David Littleproud, Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia, Peek won out against a field of nominees from each of the country’s seven state and territories. Broome-based Peek – a proud Yawuru/Bunubu woman – is passionate about driving opportunities for rural and remote people to empower the Aboriginal people through Saltwater Academy, a project which celebrates the indigenous history of the Kimberley region’s pastoral industry. Through Saltwater Academy, Peel provides emotional, economic and cultural initiatives to the community, including training and…

Dates have been confirmed for the Henty Machinery Field Day (HMFD) in 2022, with organisers scheduling the event for September 20–22 next year. The event, located in southern New South Wales, was cancelled in the previous two years as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and its longstanding ramifications. Initially, organisers were investigating the viability of the event being held in March next year. However, it was confirmed only one event would take place in 2022 following consultations with exhibitors. HMFD chief executive Belinda Anderson says the option to potentially shift the event to March did not appeal to exhibitors, who often travel interstate to attend the field day. “After surveying the exhibitors booked for the 2021 field days, it was clear a replication of the field days in March…

A new optional twin hydraulic front attachment drive system on Claas’s Jaguar 900 forage harvesters will help the crop intake match the ground speed during harvest time The new front attachment option is one of a series of changes announced for the 2022 delivery Jaguar 900 forage harvesters, which Claas Harvest Centre product manager for Jaguar Luke Wheeler says is a game-changer for pick up work. “With this option, the pick up intake auger continues to be driven via the quick-release coupler, and can adjust its speed in accordance with the feed intake rollers, which is dependent on the length of cut setting,” he says. “The all-new hydraulic drive means the speed of the reel can now be automatically adjusted to match ground speed of the harvester independently of the…

Case IH has added another product to its Australian line-up, launching a technology-packed tractor in its re-engineered Optum range. Case’s Optum series of tractors will join the larger Magnum and Steiner series in having the AFS Connect technology included. It is far from the only change, though, with both the 270 and 300 horsepower (270 and 224kW) Optum AFS Connect models getting a redesigned cabin. Aimed at increasing space, improving vision and reducing noise, there is also a new multi-controller armrest, configurable controls and a larger, high-resolution touchscreen monitor that is ISOBUS compatible. AFS Connect allows instant data transfer between the tractor and Case’s online portal. This can also be accessed remotely by Case IH dealers for service or operating advice, while also giving users access to a wide range…

Based at Yandina on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, Makin Traks has been in the business of selling premium second-hand dozers for about 10 years – with over 1,200 sold so far. While the company has recently branched out into selling refurbished John Deeres and Komatsus, most units sold are Caterpillar dozers, ranging from the 77.6kW (104 horsepower) D3 model to the 283kW (380hp) D8 model. Scale says the Cat D6 is his most popular model – large enough to be highly productive and small enough to fit on a truck bed. "Typically, a D3 is a hobby farmer and a small contractor, a D4 or D5 you are doing more contractor work at bigger farms, and a D6 is full contracting and big, big farm work," he says. Scale adds that…

Unfortunately, recent wharf activity (or lack thereof, specifically due to an industrial dispute) in Western Australia is now part of some lengthy delay equations that have been exacerbated by COVID-19 and price hikes in international freight costs. While some dealerships report adequate supplies of harvesters, ships carrying harvesters and other ag machinery were turned away from wharves at Fremantle recently. Ag machinery freight business Wallenius Wilhelmsen (WWL) is one carrier forced to divert at least three shipments to other ports. WWL says an ongoing dispute between Qube and the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) continues to disrupt its shipping services in the port of Fremantle. WWL added that the dispute has been ongoing for months and is now causing significant supply chain disruptions, with vessels being diverted to other ports.…

Merlo has launched models in its all-new ‘Generation 0’ fully electric eWorker telehandler range, with promises of more additions to the family later in the year. Merlo Group Australia general manager Michael Lombardo says the new eWorkers will be available Down Under in the second quarter of 2022. The eWorker is the result of years of research into an alternative solution to vehicles fitted with combustion engines and this latest range boasts zero emissions, zero noise and zero use of fossil fuels. Merlo says it has “created vehicles that not only reduce noise and emissions, but also offer exceptional performance with ultra-compact dimensions to achieve a level of manoeuvrability never seen before in a telehandler”. Merlo engineers have designed the new Generation 0 telehandlers starting from a blank sheet of…

Remember Chris Corrigan, the union buster who took on the wharfies back in 1998 when our ports had become so inefficient that stevedore Patrick decided enough was enough and sacked the lot of them? Australian ports at the time were moving containers at well below world standard rates and Corrigan argued the company had too little control over its own workforce. He was backed at the time by the Howard government and the National Farmers Federation. After a bitter dispute, 1,200 Patrick employees were made redundant and efficiencies introduced that saw crane productivity double and productivity per hour of work more than quadruple. Unfortunately, all that did was allow Australia to catch up to the rest of the world and, in the 23 years since, we have fallen well behind…

Figures from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) indicate a yield of around 55 megatonnes will be harvested from a suggested total of 22.93 million hectares planted; enough to reach near-record numbers for the second consecutive year. Of course, in many of the country’s southern growing fields of New South Wales and Victoria, the winter harvest is dominated by grains such as wheat, barley and oats. But harvesting crops is only half the ordeal, as we know. Following the harvest, farmers must have the correct grain handling procedures in place to maximise their tonnage and in turn, maximise profits. Geronimo farm equipment sales manager Ashley Webster says there are certain aspects farmers need to consider when purchasing and implementing their grain equipment on farms. “Basically,…

ANZ’s latest commodity report says beef prices went up more than any other food category in Australia over the past year, yet consumption also rose. Within the beef sector, ANZ says, there is anecdotal evidence that mince and lower-priced cuts are becoming more popular than steak as consumers adjust the type of beef they eat in response to the price rises, rather than abandoning the product altogether. In contrast, overall chicken consumption declined despite the price increases being relatively small compared to beef. Lamb consumption has been stable, ANZ says, with small increases in per-capita consumption anticipated in the longer term. ANZ’s food, beverage and agribusiness insights director Madeleine Swan says there is an overall trend to higher food prices, influenced by several factors. “Both globally and domestically, the decades’…

With a more powerful 420 horsepower (313kW) engine and intelligent hydraulic system, CNH says the 9000 model will help cane growers tackle the global cane market more effectively. The Austoft 9000 is available for purchase now, with the first machines set to arrive in Australia from Brazil early next year. Several technologies have been added to the 9000 model to boost performance in the field, including the AFS Auto guidance system and new 4G-compatable telematics system – the first Austoft model to offer the feature. The Austoft 9000’s redesigned hydraulics system provides operators with a 10 per cent higher harvesting capacity, 10 per cent lower fuel consumption and 50 per cent longer engine life. Case IH Australian product manager for sugarcane harvesters Lawrence Polga says customer feedback has been vital…

Bobcat has launched a new range of zero-turn mowers, which are headed to Australia. There are six mowers in the line-up, ranging from the ZT2000, described by Bobcat as having “commercial-grade features without the commercial-grade price tag” to the high-spec ZT7000. Three of the six models are available with multiple deck widths to ensure the right fit for the job. Bobcat’s top of the line mower, the ZT7000, has an overall length of 2.21m, deck width of 182.8cm and cutting heights ranging between 2.5cm and 13.9cm. Fitted with a 999cc Kawasaki engine and 56.7L fuel tank, it can reach 30km/h while in transport and up to 21km/h while mowing. By contrast, the ZT2000 has a 726cc engine, considerably smaller fuel tank of 14.3L and deck widths ranging between 106.6cm and…

Phase two of the Australian government’s Consumer Good (Quad Bikes) Safety Standard 2019 has come into effect, requiring all quad bikes adhere to stronger safety interventions. From October 11, all all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), or quad bikes, must be fitted with an operator protection device (OPD), or have one integrated into their design. All general-use model ATVs must also meet the minimum stability requirements, including a minimum tilt table ratio (TTR) of 0.55 for lateral stability and a minimum TTR of 0.8 for front and rear longitudinal pitch stability. The laws will apply to all new and second-hand imported general use quad bikes sold in the country. The requirements of phase two follow initial safety measures implemented in the first phase of the legislation, which meant all ATV vehicles must meet…

These new sprayers were announced at a global launch event, where the manufacturer showed off a suite of new products and innovations that will be shown at next year’s Agritechnica. Australian release dates for the new equipment are still to be finalised, with some products unlikely to see a Down Under launch – however its precision sprayer range is currently distributed locally. Hardi and Goldacres are among the other companies to launch technology in this field to Australian farmers in the past few months. Amazone’s SmartSprayer technology, which the company says can do ‘green on green’ spraying and identify weeds in real time, claims to reduce herbicide use by 90 per cent. The Amazone offering uses Bosch camera technology – and the Xarvio decision-making engine from agtech company BASF Digital…

Field days and agricultural shows forced to cancel this year will benefit from a $25 million federal government assistance package. The government has extended the Supporting Agricultural Shows and Field Days Program, which was introduced last year to help organisers of shows recover operational costs for events cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of these events, particularly those in Australia’s eastern states, were cancelled again for a second year in 2021. Of the $25 million, $21 million will go towards event organisers, with the remaining $4 million going to the Supporting Showmen and Women program. Agriculture Minister David Littleproud says more than 700 field days and agricultural shows have been cancelled since the pandemic began and people reliant on these events for their income had been heavily impacted. “Our…

Make no mistake, Maschio Gaspardo’s flagship Gigante Pressure seed drill range keeps impressing farmers right across Australia. The feedback is uniformly positive: it’s easy to use, offering superior germination rates, minimal disturbance to the soil and a machine that can be relied on, day in day out. Specifically designed for our conditions and tough working environments, farmers and contractors need look no further when considering seeding quality and return on investment. Overview Highly adaptable due to innovative configurations, the Gigante Pressure is an advanced direct seed drill with pneumatic seed and fertiliser distribution. Upgrades encompass a rotation of the seeder’s pressurised hopper, with bins now positioned front to back and lowered in the chassis – aiding the job of seeding on difficult terrain. The hermetically sealed pressurised hopper is split…

The grain industry in Australia is in a strong and vibrant position according to farmer representative organisation GrainGrowers, despite production dropping sizeably over the past five years. Overall grain production fell by as much as 7.6 per cent from 2014–15 to 2019–20 as growers battled dry conditions and other disruptions, figures in GrainGrowers’ State of the Australian Grains Industry 2021 report revealed. The report, produced every five years by the organisation, offers an insight into the performance of the grain sector as well as highlighting the opportunities and challenges the industry could face over the succeeding five years. But while the overall production fell to 40.4 million tonnes per year, the average annual value of production rose one per cent to $12.9 billion – an increase of more than 50…

All throughout this year analysts have predicted Australian farms will generate record crop production this year, but ANZ warns all parties to the supply chain will have to be proactive to make the most of it. ANZ head of agribusiness Mark Bennet says the great forecasts for all major crops are positive but could prove to be a headache further along the supply chain. “The Australian grain supply chain is world-leading in efficiency, all the way through from the farm, to transportation, to storage, to processing, and shipping for export,” says Bennett. “Last year’s record crop demonstrated that coping with the massive volume of grains and oilseeds can be a challenge, albeit a good one, and this year’s harvest will have the added factor of border disruptions. Bennett suggests that…

The agribusiness banking specialist forecasts land prices will climb across the next five years, with the sharpest growth expected to continue up until 2023. Such steep increases in prices are driven by the booming agricultural economy as well as the limited available land for purchase across the country. Favourable seasonal conditions, a predicted bumper crop harvest and widespread rainfall have all led to record production levels for most of the country’s growing regions. In fact, Rabobank suggests the macro settings of Australian agriculture are their most favourable in three decades. Most major agricultural commodities are either at or nearing record levels despite tariffs on certain exported goods to major markets like China and other disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic. And with a winter crop harvest expected to reach near-record levels,…