AgWatchers

#83 Sirloin or soy, T-bone or tofu?

We have a chat with Queensland Senator Susan McDonald. This conversation covers a wide range of topics with a focus on fake meat labelling, climate change and the livestock industry. 
 

#82 Geneva Grain Unconventional

We have a chat with Swithun Still, a 'veteran' grain trader based out of Geneva with a focus on the black sea region. We talk through a bunch of topics including how he survived the 2010 export ban, how he may be related to @wheatwatcher (he's probably not) and how he got into the industry. 

#81 Sheep and grain update (kind of)

100% serious, 10% of the time. A quick update for a Friday afternoon. We talk about the sheep yarding numbers being low, the controversy of sheep types and Andrew dials it up for the grain update. In this episode, we find out that @wheatwatcher can't do a Scottish accent.

#80 We Doug into Ag Data

We have a chat with Doug Fitch, CEO of AgWorld. We cover a range of areas, from data ownership, connectivity, how Australia is too small for agtech and also a couple of tangents. As always a fun conversation!

#79 A Bolt out of the Blue

We have a chat with Steve Bolt, Corrigin wool grower, leader of the livestock leaders and chair of the WoolPoll panel. In this discussion, we introduce the new six for six sense segment. We have a chat about the sheep industry in WA, live export, advocating for agriculture and the coming wool poll. Remember sharing is caring - send to your friends. 

#78 Hitting the Neale on the head of AgTech

We have a candid chat with Tim Neale of Datafarming about a whole range of things. Tim is a forthright speaker, and doesn't hold back on his opinions of agtech. Our type of guest!We cover off on the craziness of money in agtech, farming getting more efficient (and reducing input costs) and the pitfalls that agtech innovators are falling into. 

#77 Meat and two grains

A quick market update. We cover off on Canola for this year and next. The issues of a wet harvest and protein premiums. The rampaging heavy cattle and the risk of covid restrictions on lamb processing. Remember, sharing is caring.

#76 VIC lockdown impact with Richard Riordan MP.

On the day that Victoria hits record daily covid numbers, we have a chat with candid MP Richard Riordan, Shadow Minister for Local Government and Resources. We chat about the impact of COVID on business, city slickers relocating to the country, renewables on farming and the state government covid response. 

#75 China to ban fertilizer exports?

On the day of China 'banning' fertilizer exports, we have a chat with podcast regular Chris Lawson of CRU about the fertilizer market. We cover the issues of fertilizer in the US, Europe and China that are causing the fertilizer price to rise. The China ban, high energy prices, hurricane IDA, fertilizer substitutions and carbon impact. 

#74 Biosecurity = national security.

We have a chat with Andrew Henderson, consultant and chair of SAFEMEAT advisory group. We discuss the importance of biosecurity, and its impact upon national security.Recent reports indicate there is almost a 1 in 10 chance of a foot and mouth outbreak in the next ten years in Australia, we talk about this, along with Andrews recent report on his biosecurity to food security to national security equation. You can read his short report here

#73 Staffing crisis is not just on the farm.

There is a labour crisis on-farm, what is often not spoken about is the supply chain labour issues. It is getting harder for businesses to get staff. A strong jobs market is a strong barometer of the health of the industry. So we had a chat with Ryan Hoiberg from Rimfire resources about the jobs market, and the big changes in the post-drought and covid era. Ryan tells us about the job market, his criticisms of Agwatchers (specifically Andrew!), the rural jobs index, the advent of social media in recruitment and a lot more. A great mixed bag chat with Ryan. 

#72 The world is your oyster

We love oysters, and we wanted to learn a bit more about them. So we reached out to Zac Halman the founder of Angel Seafood to talk oysters. 
Zac definitely wasn't shellfish with his knowledge. In this chat, we learnt about the market for oysters, the logistics and how they have survived covid. 

#71 Fertilizer, Canola and livestock update

A quick update from us on what is happening in the market. We cover off on the situation in Canada with Canola, the rampant increase in fertilizer price and the big issues in livestock - Brazil and local shutdowns. 

#70 The State of the Supply Chain

Last week we had a chat with Fiona Simson about the state of the industry from a farming perspective. This week we thought it was a good idea to delve into the state of the supply chain. We have a chat with Mark Allison, chair of Agribusiness Australia, director of Grain Growers and CEO of Elders. As usual, we talk about a wide range of topics - China & geopolitics, sustainability, getting ag to $300bn and the COVID supply chain. 

#69 State of the industry with Fiona Simson

We have a chat with Fiona Simson, president of the National Farmers Federation. A wide range of topics from China, fake meat to carbon/biodiversity trading.
Remember - sharing is caring. 

#68 From Russia with love

We chat with Andrey Sizov of Sovecon and the Sizov Report about what is happening in his part of the world. We talk about food inflation, the downgrade of the Russian crop and the Russian export tax and its potential to impact the future growth of the Russian wheat trade. Remember to subscribe, and that sharing is caring. 

#67 Word on the street.

In our final in our series looking at how farmers can buy or sell their produce electronically - we get the word on the street from Angus Street*, CEO of Auctionsplus. We talk about where it came from, the impact of COVID, the importance of conflict resolution and a few other bits and pieces. *Sorry for the pun.

#66 The carcass cutting crisis

We have a chat with Patrick Hutchison (CEO of the Australian Meat Industry Council) about the meat processing sector. We cover off on the last-minute changes to staffing rates due to covid, the new ag visa, the importance of the whole supply chain & black pudding supply. 

#65 Red hot machinery

Machinery like a lot of things has gone gangbusters this year. We talk to Dwain Duxton of Farm Tender about the changing environment for machinery sales, and the online buying and selling of bits and pieces for the farm. 

#64 A transparent grain market.

We talk with Nathan Cattle of Clear Grain about the changing dynamics over the past decade in agricultural markets, transparency in the industry and the future of buying and selling. 
This is a first in a series on how things are changing.