re: widespread frost damage in wa DIRECTIONS FOR SUSTAINABLEAND...

re: widespread frost damage in wa DIRECTIONS FOR SUSTAINABLE
AND PROFITABLE GAINS IN THE
AUSTRALIAN GRAINS INDUSTRY
2002 Australian Nuffield Farming Scholar
Report completed May 2004
Aaron Edmonds
Earth Farm Australia
PO Box 55 CALINGIRI WA 6569
Email: [email protected]
Ph: 08 9628 7019
Fax: 08 9628 7061
Mbl: 0427 287 019
Sponsored By
LANDMARK AWB
Aaron Edmonds ‘Sustainable Cropping Practises’ Sponsored by LANDMARK AWB
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Table of Contents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY........................................................................................................2
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.......................................................................................................4
STUDY GOAL...........................................................................................................................5
INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................................................6
Developing Sustainable Food Culture ..................................................................................8
Some Benefits Obvious, Others Very Dubious ................................................................ 11
Non-Pesticide versus Pesticide Production...................................................................... 12
Genetic Modification will be the Key to Sustainable Cropping Systems...................... 12
Food for Thought................................................................................................................... 13
Soybean Steaks and Soybean Sausages? ...................................................................... 14
Dairy Substitutes ................................................................................................................... 15
Australia Needs a Profitable Legume – Enter the LUPIN............................................... 15
Leguminous Oilseeds – Market Opportunities ................................................................. 18
Targeting the Dairy Substitute Market ............................................................................... 19
Depleted Wild World Fish Stocks Fuelling the Growth of Aquaculture ........................ 20
Atlantic Salmon – The Chicken of the Sea ....................................................................... 20
Omega-3 Fatty Acids and the Grains Industry ................................................................. 21
ENHANCING NATURAL PLANT DEFENCES AND COMPETITIVENESS
THROUGH BIOTECHNOLOGY...................................................................................... 28
Allelopathy - Exploiting Natural Plant Defence Mechanisms ......................................... 28
Allelochemicals in Cereal Crops......................................................................................... 28
Dealing with the Potential for Fungal Attack..................................................................... 28
Opportunities to Reduce Labour and Input Costs............................................................ 29
WILD FOODS – INCREASING THE RESILIENCE OF AGRICULTURAL
SYSTEMS.......................................................................................................................... 30
RECOMMENDATIONS........................................................................................................ 36
REFERENCES..................................................................................................................... 37
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The concept of sustainability in Australia is too often viewed as a goal that is
independent to achieving profitability gains in modern day food production. In the
Australian grains industry if we look at the main environmental problems of salinity, soil
erosion and nitrate leaching, it is obvious that economic benefits are to be derived from
keeping the soil productive, keeping the soil in the system and optimising nitrogen
conversion into grain yield. Whilst these are very real concerns in a world of cheap oil,
they are secondary to the inevitable negative impact of rising energy costs in the future.
Vast amounts of energy are required to produce nitrogenous fertilizers. It takes the
energy from roughly one litre of oil to produce one kilogram of urea. One must therefore
appreciate that inflation in the cost of consuming energy, will directly inflate the price of
nitrogenous fertilizers and impact tremendously on the profitability of producing nitrogen
hungry crops such as wheat and canola in Australia.
Organic production is expanding but at the expense of volume in the global food chain
and some like myself would also argue weakening future global food security. The
organic movement seems to be ignorant of the fact that replacing chemical inputs like
pesticides with diesel and steel in complex repetitious cultivation is not a move towards
a sustainable future. It is more realistically the energy cost of producing that will likely
shape the future evolution of agriculture and horticulture worldwide. The general impact
being that production systems will need to focus more on the ability of leguminous crop
species to suffice nitrogen needs.
Poor returns from growing grain legumes in Australia have lead to a dominance of
cereal crops. Going forward this is a dangerous situation as research funding is directed
away from leguminous crops such as lupins that need to ultimately dominate southern
cropping zones. The energy cost associated with producing legumes is significantly
lower than those crops like cereals requiring large amounts of fertilizer. Being the
legume most greatly suited to Australia’s predominantly acid soils, the lupin must be
principally focussed on by plant breeders, grain growers, marketers and end users alike.
Breeding higher percentages of oil into the crop remains the number one priority for
industry to increase commodity value.
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Australia’s dependence on high risk markets in the Middle East to consume our cereal
bounty would be reduced with the development of a profitable leguminous oilseed.
Preferential marketing is better enabled with high valued grains particularly one
containing both protein and oil, able to be assimilated into any known food culture. A
recent problem with a false karnal bunt contamination claim in Pakistan serves to
highlight this need for Australia to move marketing focus away from a region which is at
best never stable. Asian opportunities need to be targeted given our significant freight
advantage over our competitors which will only increase in time with the rising cost of
transport and shipping traffic particularly between Australia and China.
The concept of perenniality in grain crops also warrants investment by industry. The
economic benefits to any cropping business where two, three or more years’ harvests
can be taken from one years establishment cost are potentially very significant. The
cost of machinery is significant and growing for all grains enterprises. Perennial crops
with their deep and robust root systems also enable farmers to optimise inputs.
Increased water and nutrient use efficiencies can be realised and energy investment is
also able to be reduced significantly. This is where the future of crop production lies
essentially. Breeding for crops that require less labour and input units for they are either
able to do the work themselves or only remove those fertiliser elements that can be
biologically produced. Some terrific examples in the area of transgenics exist reducing
labour and input components, eg Bollgard cotton.
A cropping option exists that allows grain growers the ability produce oil and protein
without fertilizer inputs. The sandalwood is a unique native tree crop highly adapted to
Australia’s harsh conditions. The tree produces nuts which are high in oil (60%) and
protein (18%) making it an attractive proposition to the southern grain belt. It requires no
fertilizer inputs and will be an important crop in the future.
Those opposed to the technology of transgenics turn their backs on science and at a
time when the challenges faced by global food producers are largely unrealised given
the current availability of cheap energy. Transgenic technology can offer ways in which
to preserve and protect in the medium term the food culture we all love to indulge in.
This will be through allowing agricultural production to reduce its dependence on fossil
fuels for productivity and profitability.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
2003 has been an exciting year full of learning both on and off the farm. An opportunity
made possible by the Australian Nuffield Farming Scholars Association. For this I am
truly indebted to this collective group which provides an unbelievable forum in which to
cultivate many crops of thought. I look forward to joining the ranks of Nuffield and
providing the support necessary to foster the development of new scholars and forward
the goals of this industry leading organisation.
I would also like to thank my sponsor in Landmark AWB and in particular David
Coombes. I was afforded confidence in my ability to identify areas of importance to the
grains industry and for this I am hopeful I have generated value, not only for this
industry, but also for Landmark AWB.
I am also extremely grateful for the work my parents put into the year whilst I was away
and must congratulate them on their efforts in producing some of the best crops our
farm has ever seen. I could not have had this experience without their strong support
and ability to make the farm continue as though I was still there.
Finally I would like to dedicate this report to the late Harry Perkins whom I only briefly
knew but whose passion for Nuffield inspired me to strive to achieve the most I could
out of the experience. It will be hard to forget that proud grandfatherly smile that was
unavoidable to ignore from behind the podium and microphone.
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STUDY GOAL
The primary goal of this study was to identify technologies, new crops and/or agronomic
practises that have the realistic potential and ability to be adopted by the Australian
grains industry in order to concurrently increase profitability and better environmental
parameters within and around the production system. It was also an important goal to
better understand agriculture and if and how it will cope in the future with rising energy
costs.
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INTRODUCTION
The future role of the grains industry in the Australian landscape is going to face
increased pressures from two distinct yet related areas in its goal to survive and
flourish. Competing in the global marketplace has always and will continue, at an ever
increasing rate, to drive the need to find more cost efficiencies in production. Our
massive environmental problems (namely salinity and soil erosion) will have to be
meaningfully addressed if government intervention is to be avoided and more
importantly, access to affluent foreign markets is maintained.
Macroeconomic Factors Affecting the Viability of the Grains Industry
Aside from upward trends in currency values, the greatest medium to long term risk to
the cost structure of all grain producing enterprises around the world is the inevitable
rising cost of energy. Fertilizer prices are intrinsically linked to the global oil price
which then determines the price of gas. Most people would be surprised to learn that
fertilizer accounts for the vast majority of energy invested into any cropping and for that
matter food production system, even those involving conventional tillage practices. The
energy equivalent from burning one litre of oil is required to produce one kilogram of
urea, a common source of nitrogen for crops.
Given that fossil fuels such as natural gas are a non-renewable resource and the
massive, yearly, global energy investment into nitrogenous fertilizer production, it is
unlikely that such a comparatively cheap source of energy will be found as a
replacement. This is especially the case where competition for energy will preferentially
direct it to markets generating higher margins for oil and gas companies. Already this
can be seen in the United States where anhydrous ammonia and urea prices have
recently significantly appreciated as a result of significant volumes of gas being
preferentially used for domestic household energy consumption. A similar situation will
be faced by the New Zealand dairy industry when the Maui gas fields begin to show
signs of exhaustion. Pressure exists globally on gas reserves with massive demand
coming from China whose hunger will only continue to increase.
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Variability and Unpredictability in Weather Patterns
Long term forecasts for Australia’s climate as a result of global warming indicate trends
towards declining rainfall averages, more extreme rainfall events, higher evaporation
rates and increased susceptibility to frosts (as a result of higher carbon dioxide
concentrations in the atmosphere). The consequences of all the trends for grain
production are higher risk associated with planting decisions and indeed individual crop
selections, increased cost in managing environmental issues such as soil erosion, and
the capacity to be able to evolve management systems suited to potentially new
seasonal conditions.
So what does this mean for agriculture and grain production in Australia going into the
future? Quite simply it highlights the need for our industry to reduce our reliance on
fossil fuel derived energy. How can industry effectively use less diesel, less fertilizer and
less pesticide in yearly production yet still generate margins similar or even better than
current profitabilities?
Environmental Problems Eroding Profitability and Sustainability
The single greatest environmental threat to the long term profitability of grain production
in Australia is undoubtedly dry land salinity. There are however many other significant
environmental challenges which industry will need to address to maintain productivity.
These are in areas such as soil erosion, acidity, sodicity and pesticide resistance in
weeds, insects and diseases.
Failure to utilize any tools available to help increase profitability and sustainability will
translate to cost burdens that industry and, where the environment is concerned, society
will have to bear in the future. This means that farmers, researchers, end users,
consumers and political institutions should be open to evaluating the potential for all
management options.
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ENVIRONMENTAL ASSURANCE & DEVELOPING FOOD CULTURES
Developing Sustainable Food Culture
The development of food culture in Australia has been an evolutionary process
generally following popular trends worldwide. Food culture is a function of economics,
regional agricultural enterprises, consumable natural resources, taste, tradition, fashion,
health issues and increasingly environmental considerations.
In India the culture of food revolves around grain legumes and rice. Pulses such as
chickpeas, lentils, and cowpeas are cheap sources of protein being legumes,
particularly when compared to meat, dairy and egg products. They store well and do not
require refrigeration even in such a harsh environment. Poor economic conditions in the
farming sector have favoured legume production where some farmers cannot afford
fertilizer. Sweden on the other hand has a highly refined food culture centring on fish,
meat, berries and dairy products. The wilderness of Sweden is home to a wide range of
indigenous berries with unique tastes and nutritional benefits and its vast number of
fresh water lakes are brimming with fish. Consumers are extremely affluent and large
disposable incomes allow regular indulgence of expensive tastes like cheese. Swedish
agriculture has traditionally focussed and continues to focus strongly on dairying to
complement cropping enterprises.
It is important to understand how food culture, whilst shaped in some part by agriculture,
is also able to strongly influence the nature of agricultural systems. The growing taste
and demand for wine in Western Australia and the world in the 1990s resulted in the
conversion of a large number of traditional beef and dairy areas across to grape and
wine production. This presents problems for agriculture when prevailing tastes
encourage agricultural enterprises not ‘friendly’ to the environmental parameters.
It is obvious in Australian food culture that very few consumers understand the
significance of their food choices in determining land use in agriculture. Clearly this
deficiency needs to be addressed in order for agricultural systems to develop that are
more suited to the Australian landscape.
Clear attempts to achieve change in food cultures exist in the Baltic Sea region where
huge nutrient loads from agriculture threaten the very habitability of this body of water
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by marine species. A project known as BERAS (Baltic Ecological Recycling Agriculture
and Society) headed by Artur Gransted of the Biodynamic Research Institute in
Sweden, has been initiated to try and achieve just this. Its basic aim is to promote more
sustainable food supply systems and lifestyles in the Baltic region. Only in its early
stages, the project will face some challenging issues. Particularly if it is found that
ecological (organic) producers are found to contribute equally as damaging levels of
nutrients to the catchment of the Baltic Sea. The general logistical demand of
implementing a research program involving a number of different countries will be
challenging.
In any case, the same opportunity exists here in Australia, where the environmental
problems facing agriculture are numerous and their nature is extremely serious. Food
from farms whose production has enhanced environmental parameters needs to be
actively promoted amongst prevailing food cultures. This will then lead to economic
opportunities in the agricultural sector significant enough to encourage more sustainable
land use. Export opportunities in Europe will be created where food cultures are already
developing in such a manner.
KRAV – Ecological Certification in Sweden
The KRAV system of organic certification in Sweden provides an excellent example of
both the benefits of certification and also the complexities involved in implementing such
a system of assurance. Widespread recognition of KRAV as the ecological or organic
standard in Sweden exists amongst the majority of consumers. Processors and value
adding enterprises are also firmly of the opinion that the logo helps to realise significant
price premiums dependent on the nature of the product. One comment from a food
manufacturer was that ‘KRAV certified produce simply walks out the door’.
Whilst the majority of Swedish consumers could be seen to be more sensitive to the
production environment of food products, they still fundamentally lack a broader
understanding of the complexities involved in agricultural production. This is a problem
that manifests itself all around the developed world and needs to be addressed if we as
a society are to bias purchasing decisions in favour of more environmentally
considerate production.
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LEAF – Linking Environment And Farming
LEAF is an English charity which ‘works to encourage farmers to take up more
environmentally responsible farming practises or Integrated Farm Management (IFM).
LEAF also promotes the benefits of IFM to consumers and raises awareness of the way
many farmers are responding to current concerns.’
This innovative organisation is actively engaging in the process of developing food
culture in the UK through implementation of extension campaigns. Demonstration farms
are set up throughout the country to enable farmers, environmentalists, consumer
groups and schools to learn first hand about the efforts of LEAF certified farms.
Products containing the LEAF label of assurance can now be found in most major
supermarkets.
The same opportunity exists in Australia to help try and bridge the ever widening gap
between rural and urban cultures. It is of utmost importance that consumers possess a
basic understanding of the problems created by farming systems so they understand
the importance of their purchasing decisions.
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ORGANIC AGRICULTURE – IS IT REALLY MORE SUSTAINABLE
THAN CONVENTIONAL AGRICULTURE?
Many Claims Made!
‘There are people that wonder how organic production will feed the world. Today people
are starving due to social and economic conditions – not because of a too small food
production. The solution is found in political and economic change and not in
agricultural methods. … Organic agriculture, as we know it today, is the most
sustainable kind of agriculture. Nevertheless, also in organics, there are a lot of
improvements to be made’ Gunnar Rundgren, CEO, Grolink.
‘Organic agriculture is an agricultural system that promotes environmentally, socially
and economically sound production of food, fibre and timber etc. … Organic agriculture
significantly reduces external inputs by avoiding the use of chemo-synthetic fertilizers,
pesticides and pharmaceuticals. Instead it works with nature to increase both
agricultural yields and disease resistance.’ International Federation of Organic
Agriculture Movements (IFOAM).
Some Benefits Obvious, Others Very Dubious
No one can argue with the organic movement that pesticide usage is a negative part of
economically sound agronomy with conventional food production systems. Agricultural
production without the use of pesticides is probably the only true way to guarantee
foods are free of chemical residues. Insecticides are broadly speaking very unselective
in the insect species they have efficacy on. This results in the death of many beneficial
insect species when they are applied. Their effects on the water cycle and other parts of
the food chain including our own are also significant.
The organic movement fails to recognize the significant effect rising energy costs will
have on the world’s food security as oil and gas reserves are eroded. In its mission to
reduce chemical inputs, many organic agricultural and horticultural production systems
have switched to techniques inherently increasingly reliant on fossil fuels. Cultivation is
considered an acceptable means of achieving weed control and also increasing soil
fertility. Yet in vast areas of the world, increased cultivation leads to far higher levels of
soil erosion via wind and water. Forecasted climate change will only exacerbate these
losses of a non renewable resource and vital substrate for life. What are we without our
topsoil? Extreme weather after vigorous cultivation will lead to erosion in any soil type,
in any country.
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Nutrition in many broad acre organic cropping systems generally relies on leguminous
plants, usually pasture species to build soil fertility for cereal crops. This may take two to
three years with the assumption being that this nitrogen remains in the soil. In particular
in Europe where high rainfall patterns prevail, it is hard to believe significant levels of
nitrogen would not be leached. Some recent evidence in Sweden has been found to
suggest organics is perhaps even more of a contributor to eutrophication problems as
conventional systems.
Non-Pesticide versus Pesticide Production
A recent 4 year trial conducted by Landbo Centrum in central Zealand, Denmark made
a comparison of a non-pesticide versus pesticide dependent cropping system. A
number of interesting conclusions were drawn from this project. Inter-row tine harrowing
as a means of weed control in the non-pesticide system resulted in only ‘satisfactory’
weed control. Obtaining a satisfactory level of control became increasingly problematic
as seed banks and subsequent weed burdens increased over the duration of the trial,
clearly threatening the long term sustainability of the system. On average for the four
crops trialled, 25% of grain yield was lost in the non-pesticide trial. Levels of surplus
nitrogen were far greater in the non-pesticide production systems and fuel consumption
increased by 33%. If Denmark’s 1.4 million hectares of equivalent cropping area
converted to the non-pesticide system of production, the economy would suffer a loss of
DKK 2.9 billion per year or around AU$700 million, a significant cost to any economy.
The saying ‘it is hard to be green when you are in the red’ would certainly hold weight in
this situation.
Genetic Modification will be the Key to Sustainable Cropping Systems
There is no doubting that genetic modification of crops will be essential to ensure food
security in this world at some point in the future. Not only through modification for
herbicide tolerance, which arguably translates to gains in sustainability, but for systems
of production that will inherently require far less energy investment. Organic fertilizers
are bulky and deliver far lower concentrations of nutrients being far more expensive
than other fertilizer sources. Producing macronutrients such as nitrogen where they are
needed must be the ultimate goal for all production systems, because transportation
requires energy. Increased nitrogen levels will need to be produced by legumes and
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their associative nitrogen fixing bacterial species. Such bacteria have been the basis for
life since the beginning of evolution and their real importance will begin to be
comprehended as this millennium ages.
Plants will need to be able to cope with the changing nature of soil chemistry, eg
acidification, salinisation, sodicity, aluminium toxicity. This is possible with transgenic
technology. Is it sustainable for Sri Lanka to supply lime to agricultural soils that has
been mined from their coastal reef ecosystems? It is more environmentally sound to
alter plants to be able to cope with acidity or even biochemically remediate it. 70 million
hectares of wasteland in India cannot continue to remain agriculturally and
environmentally inert in the future with over one billion people to be fed and the number
rising. Novel perennial plants are needed to drop water tables and allow yearly rainfall
to then leach salt levels back below the growing zone of crops. Are we that
presumptuous to think these plants can be created overnight? We have the cheapest
energy now we will ever have, so let us begin to use it to produce the technology we will
need to cope with higher production cost burdens.
Food for Thought
40% of the genes found in a potato plant are also found in a toad. Why do we as a
society baulk at the notion of using foreign genes in food crops? What science tells us
about genes is that they are transferable naturally amongst species if selection pressure
is applied. Science also tells us that when DNA enters the digestive system of all
animals, it is broken down into its various amino acid components. What science exists
to even begin to make us suspicious that transgenic DNA could pose a danger to
health?
It is the chemicals that DNA encodes for the production of which can lead to the
presence of anti-nutritional factors and health risks, not the DNA itself. This means that
the application of transgenic technology will have to be assessed on a case by case
basis. There may very well be some bad applications for this technology. As a society,
we can be precious and pursue ideology that appears to be going against science, or
we can be judicious and prepare for the future, a future where food security will become
a real issue particularly in developing countries, where large populations continue to
grow larger.
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IMPORTANCE OF GRAIN LEGUMES
Soybean Steaks and Soybean Sausages?
A visit to your local supermarket in most western European and Scandinavian countries
allows you to find a whole range of plant and mushroom based meat substitutes for
vegetarians, and dairy substitutes for those with intolerance to dairy products. Whilst
expensive in relative terms to meat, these substitutes particularly those derived from
legumes like soybeans will become increasingly important to the food culture of the
world in the future. Prices do not reflect the true production costs of these food items
and are more likely to be premium priced against meat because of their small vegan
target market. For example, you will pay 38,90 Kronor in Sweden for 300g of soybean
sausages. Assuming 5SEK=AU$1, this equates to around $24/kg, well above normal
prices for sausages. Similarly for soybean ice cream, 15,50 Swedish Kronor
(AU$4.10/kg) would be paid for a 750ml tub. In the United States, meat alternatives
such as turkey and hamburger that are predominantly soy, have grown into a US$500
million annual market. Many burgers now contain two ‘almost’ beef patties and in fact
unless stated as 100% beef, burger patties can contain up to 30% soy protein in North
America.
Figure1. 100% soy sausages (absolutely no meat) and 100% soy icecream
(absolutely no milk) from a supermarket in Sweden.
Rising energy costs over time affecting the price of artificial nitrogenous fertilizers,
refrigeration and processing costs, particularly with milk, will place increasing pressure
on the cost of meat and dairy products. Legumes such as soybean are currently the
cheapest sources of protein in the world of food and this will become even more the
case with their production costs virtually independent of nitrogenous fertilizers and cold
storage requirements until after the point of manufacture. Broader scale adoption of
transgenic technology in legume crops is likely to, in fact, provide down side price risk to
these sources of dietary protein.
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Dairy Substitutes
The soybean is already a significant competitor as a substitute to milk and dairy
products. Soymilk sales in the US grew from US$100 million in 1995 to US$500 million
in 2000. Predictions in the US alone for the next 3-5 years suggest soymilk sales could
exceed US$1 billion. Soy bean milk and yoghurt has a differing taste to similar dairy
products which could be seen to discourage substitution. Soybean ice cream on the
other hand is almost identical in taste and texture to ice cream made using dairy
components. Substitution in this area is most likely discouraged by a lack of consumer
awareness as to taste and also past experiences with trying soybean milk or yoghurt.
What is important here is that soy substitutes are increasingly improving in taste.
The problem the dairy industry has is the huge energy cost it bears in the processing of
a highly perishable commodity into protein and milk fat components that can be cheaply
stored, not to mention the reliance to a large extent on nitrogenous fertilizers to fuel
pasture growth or cereal feed grain production. Nutritionally, dairy products are less
desirable than the benefits offered by soymilk substitutes. Soybeans on the other hand
are easily stored in ambient temperatures, quite often without risk of insect attack. Milk
production in Australia is also highly dependent on water for pasture irrigation where
grain is not the main food source, which may place pressure on returns into the future.
This would be more as a result of governmental regulation on practises such as flood
irrigation.
Australia Needs a Profitable Legume – Enter the LUPIN
The current problem for the Australian grains industry is that there is no one legume that
is as profitable as growing cereals or canola. Lupins are the most widely grown legume
due to large areas of poorer, acidic soil types throughout the southern grain belts. Most
gross margins are exceedingly poor and in some cases even negative because of low
yields and weak commodity values stemming from end uses predominantly in the feed
sector. The area planted to lupins in Australia has steadily been declining also due to
increased production risks in low rainfall areas. The most immediate priority for the lupin
industry must surely be to target human consumption markets where soybeans are
used.
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Lupin prices only appear to spike in extreme seasons when drought impacts
significantly on nation wide yields. It is interesting to consider how lupin prices seem to
be a function of the size of the Australian crop, which has ranged from nearly 2 million
tonnes down to 300,000 and has seen prices range from $150-300/tonne. The world
soybean crop is forecast to hit 220 million tonnes for the current 2003-04 season. You
could be sure that if world production figures for soybean were out by 1.7 million tonnes,
it would not translate to a huge difference in grower returns. It clearly highlights the
need for our lupin industry to target high valued niche markets. It is crazy to think that
the lupin industry should continue to be satisfied with low valued feed markets where
competition is fierce.
Priorities for Lupin Breeders
The great irony is that the world soybean crop, which has around double the world
economic value of lupins on a per tonne basis is approximately 65% genetically
modified. The case against genetic modification of lupins is fickle and laughable. The
lupin industry suffers economic damage every year from the Heliothis caterpillar yet
multi-gene resistance is available against this pest, such as in the Australian cotton
industry with the Bollgard® variety.
Nutritionally, soy has big advantages over lupins, which contribute to its price premium.
Lupin seed is lower in oil than soybean having 6-9% as opposed to 18%. It would be
highly desirable for this percentage to be increased in lupins to open up new marketing
possibilities in the future. The pearl lupin (Lupinus mutabilis) has a seed oil percentage
that is similar to soy yet agronomically performs poorly when compared to the narrow
leaf lupin (Lupinus angustifolius). The most immediate way to increase oil levels in
narrow leaf lupins may be through interspecific hybridisation with the pearl lupin. It must
be highlighted that it is the oil component of the soy bean which currently contributes
greatly to the value of that grain.
The newest ‘bad fats’ known as trans fatty acids are produced when oils such as soy oil
are hydrogenated, an industrial process which makes the oil more stable and able to be
used at high temperatures for frying and baking. Legislation is enacted which will force
food manufacturers in the US to identify the levels of trans fats in their product by the
year 2006. The majority of big food processors are not waiting and are moving to oils
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that do not produce trans fats now, fearing litigation from people exhibiting induced
health problems. Plant breeders at the USDA are working towards a genetically
modified bean that has nutritionally improved oil characteristics. Modified soy will
produce an oil that is below 7% in saturated fats, has half the levels of linolenic fatty
acids of around 3.5% (which will also increase flavour), and has an increased oleic
content from 20% to 60%. A great deal can be learnt from the direction of the soybean
industry in the US for this legume will continue to become an increasingly important
primary source of human nutrition.
95% of the protein from US soybeans still goes into the livestock feed market. Lupin
protein is inherently low in sulphur containing amino acids such as methionine, cysteine
and lysine, whereas soybean protein has an amino acid composition similar to that of
meat. Biotechnology has already been used in this area of protein composition however
bureaucracy halts the commercial adoption of nutritionally improved lupins. Plant
breeders using the technology have enabled expression of a high methionine protein
from sunflower in lupin seeds. Processors in the US are making good progress in
increasing the amount of soy protein going into the human food chain. This is where
even more value will be generated in this miraculous bean.
Lupins have around 25% fibre coming from the thick seed coat. This compares to 15%
fibre with soy bean. This percentage must be reduced to lower levels and add value to
the grain. It may indeed make the grain more susceptible to caterpillar and weevil pests,
so pest resistance, preferably multigene, may also need to be added to the future lupin.
Other Examples of Niche Markets for Lupins
The soy sauce industry in Japan is a big consumer of soybeans and may represent one
such opportunity. Each Japanese consumer will use around 8.5L of soy sauce a year. It
has been shown that lupins can be used to make a similar product called shoyu. It
would take around 330,000 tonnes of lupins to produce the soy sauce necessary for
Japan’s yearly requirements and Australia’s total crop in 2002-2003 would not have
been enough to supply this single market.
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Leguminous Oilseeds – Market Opportunities
Biodiesel and products derived from vegetable oils will prove to be potentially lucrative
markets in the future. A great many countries around the world are focussing their
efforts on developing biodiesel in particular from canola oil, a crop with a large
requirement for nitrogen usually coming from artificial sources. An exception to this is
the United States where soybeans are being utilised. This is important, as net energy
gains from leguminous oilseeds are far higher than from other oilseeds. Soy biodiesel
blends can be found in most major towns throughout the mid west of the US.
Figure 2. Soy biodiesel blends commonly found throughout mid western towns in the
United States. This service station was in Great Bend, Kansas.
Transgenic application in this area is occurring in the US particularly in introducing novel
oils for high value industrial purposes. Funding into the development of such crop
improvements comes from the Soybean Checkoff Fund which is a pool of acquired
levies from American soy producers and is operated by the United Soybean Board.
Similar crop improvement work has been done by CSIRO with cottonseed in taking low
value oil and turning it into a high valued one. Genetic manipulation of the oil
component of lupins would certainly be possible in this area, particularly since industrial
uses will be independent of current consumer concerns. This once again highlights the
need for our lupin breeders to increase oil levels, even if it requires the use of
transgenics.
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Targeting the Dairy Substitute Market
The market for dairy substitutes using soybeans has been growing rapidly around the
world. It also presents potential for the lupin market even as a substitute for soy beans.
It is surprising that this is not already occurring given the large price differential between
lupins and soybeans. In fact the economics of soybean production in some areas of the
world like the Mato Grosso in Brazil make it the number one choice of crop. This is a
vast difference to the economics of growing lupins in Australia making it the last choice
of crop by the majority of Australia farmers.
The huge growth in the economics of the soybean, have translated to significant
increases in land values which give a true reflection of the earning potential of growing
soybeans. This situation is unique in the world, yet could be possible in Australia with
lupins if significantly higher valued markets were realised and breeding programs were
able to increase the overall agronomic characteristics of the crop.
Back to Education and Food Culture
Whilst the importance of education and food culture has been discussed previously, it is
time to now emphasise how necessary it is for lupins to become part of a new
Australian diet and to be embraced as a way to better the state of the environment. You
need only look at food culture in the United States where there would be almost no
manufactured foods not containing soybean components, be it soy protein, soy oil,
lecithin etc. This then fuels domestic strength for the grain and is a significant reason for
the relative cheapness of American manufactured foods in world terms. Compare this to
Europe where dairy and egg components are widely used where soybean components
could be, manufactured food is significantly more expensive.
From a marketing perspective the sale of lupin protein to foreign markets is not helped
by the current prevailing food culture in Australia. After all, it is harder to sell something
that you do not eat yourself.
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AQUACULTURE – OPPORTUNITIES FOR AGRICULTURE
Depleted Wild World Fish Stocks Fuelling the Growth of Aquaculture
It is important to understand the huge resource drain exerted on marine ecosystems
when wild fishing occurs. Commonly preferred fish species are generally all predatory in
nature and include cod, tuna, halibut and salmon. The production of 1kg of cod in the
wild, a once commonly fished species, would have required ingestion of 10kg of whiting.
This amount of whiting would have taken 100kg of copepods, the key link between fish
and phytoplankton, which in turn would have demanded 1,000kg of phytoplankton.
Irresponsible overfishing of Atlantic cod forced the Canadian government in 1992 to
impose a moratorium on cod fishing. Failure of this fishery to recover in the ensuing
years forced Canada to place this fish on the endangered species list (Guterl, F., 2003).
A fact that lies in direct contrast to the perceivably limitless resource this seemed to be
50 years ago. It has been estimated that world fish landings have been declining by
around 700,000 metric tonnes a year since the early 1980s (Pauly, D. & Watson, R.,
2003).
Such pressure on the world’s wild fisheries has led to a vast proliferation in aquacultural
production systems around the world. On the surface this would appear to be a simple
solution to a worldwide problem but as with other food production systems, significant
challenges exist.
Atlantic Salmon – The Chicken of the Sea
Commercial aquacultural production of Atlantic salmon began in Norway in the late
1960s. Since then the industry has grown to a US$2 billion dollar industry with around
1.2 million tonnes of fish produced. Production has spread to the UK, Canada, the
United States and Chile. It has put the once expensive fish within the budget of the
average everyday shopper in the affluent world (Montaigne, F., 2003).
Salmon is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which is great for the dietary requirements of
mankind, but the cost of this is immense to marine environments. The production of one
pound of farmed fish requires around 3 to 4 pounds of fish rendered into feed pellets.
Fish such as mackerel, anchovies and pilchards are harvested from the world’s fisheries
to inefficiently satisfy the hungry omega-3 fatty acid dietary requirements of farmed
salmon.
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Figure 3. The salmon industry represents a big opportunity for agriculture.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids and the Grains Industry
Clearly the biotechnologists of the world recognise the huge potential grain legumes
have in being able to deliver cheap protein as well as the essential omega-3 fatty acids
to farmed fish. In the process, the need to plunder the stocks of wild forage fish species
is removed. In fact, the potential to greatly reduce the cost of feed in these systems
exists through this very biotechnological advance. China is the world’s largest importer
of soybean (4.58 million tonnes from the US in 2002-03) with most of that (3.82 million
tonnes) being used to feed its growing aquaculture industry. This is currently combined
with fish meal to obtain the essential omega 3 oils.
Work currently underway at Australia’s CSIRO provides anti GM activists with an
attitudinal dilemma in the face of dwindling world fish stocks. Australia’s CSIRO already
has transgenic cotton varieties which yield omega-3 rich cottonseed. A manipulation
made possible through the transplantation of omega 3 encoding genes from
phytoplankton into the cotton genome.
Lupins also being an oilseed (leguminous) have the ability to carry enhanced omega 3
producing genes. The lupin would then become transgenic yet could easily be marketed
to China’s undiscerning aquacultural industry, obvious by its current reliance on US
soybeans which are 80% Roundup Ready.
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PERENNIAL GRAINS
Agrotriticum – The First Perennial Wheat
Collaboration between Russia and the United States in the mid 1970s resulted in the
breeding of a perennial wheat cultivar known as Agrotriticum W-21. This unique grain
was bred by crossing perennial Russian bred Triticum vulgare cultivars, with a perennial
range grass native to the USA (Agropyron elongatum). Yielding lower than annual
cultivars and in a world of cheap oil, this breeding program fell by the wayside.
Figure 4. Dr Jerry Glover showing the extensive root system of a perennial wheatgrass
grown at the Land Institute in Salina, Kansas.
Future Cropping Systems
Today researchers in the North America are leading the way towards developing
perennial grain crops. Perennial grain crops have a number of advantages over annuals
and have the potential to achieve major cost savings to production in all grain growing
regions around the world. The first and obvious cost saving would come from an
establishment cost being averaged over the life of the perennial crop which may be from
3 to 5 years. With dedicated breeding the persistence of such a wheat or any other
grain may be able to be increased even more. This will effectively increase the area
able to be farmed per unit of machinery having obvious savings benefits to the cost
structure of grain production. The longer term cost risk of running and owning
machinery is going to increase before it decreases, also highlighting the importance of
avoiding overinvestment.
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Seed costs are also significant to all grain businesses particularly as seeding rates have
tended to increase in the last 5 years. Once again there is potential to spread the cost of
seed over the life of the crop.
In Australia, the potential to better manage rising water tables will be possible through
the use of these crops. It is far more cost effective to ‘drain’ the land using income
generating crops that produce biomass or grain as opposed to physically attempting to
drop water tables through deep drainage, particularly in what weather forecasters
predict to be an imminent long term drying trend. The usage efficiency of leachable
nutrients such as nitrogen, sulphur and potassium is greatly increased as deeper, more
robust root systems are able to tap into nutrient pools at depth and have access to
fertilizers after leaching rainfall events. Recharge capacity of summer rainfall events is
greatly reduced and would allow for grazing opportunities where livestock is a part of
the enterprise mix.
The opportunity for intercropping with leguminous species such as subterranean clover
that do nothing more than supply nitrogen is a realistic option. This allows growers to
utilise the nitrogen fixing capacity of rhizobium within a cereal production system. The
obvious consideration here is water allocation between the grain producer and the
nitrogen fixer. Agronomic implications are also complicated within such a cropping
system, but nevertheless still manageable.
More robust root systems strengthen a plants ability to deal with root diseases that
normally restrict year on year profitability of wheat on wheat rotations. This is where the
economics of production needs to be analysed over the life of the perennial as opposed
to a rotation of annual crops, some of which, such as lupins, that serve to achieve long
term agronomic rather than the short term economic goals of the system.
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Perennial Cereal Rye
Figure 5. 5 days growth after simulated hay silage cut in perennial cereal rye.
A cultivar of rye which is perennial is being developed at the Lethbridge Agricultural
Research Institute in southern Alberta, Canada. The variety (ACE-1) will be available in
the coming years, and is first likely to be used in the fodder industry given its prolific
ability to generate new growth after being cut. The grain is smaller than annual rye
grain, however it will only be improved in time for what may become a significant grain
crop. There are issues relating to its ability to self fertilize and so grain yields are not
tremendously exciting at this stage of the breeding program.
Regrowth in an ideal glasshouse microenvironment after cutting for hay silage has been
observed to be as much as a foot in 5 days. The hay industry could certainly benefit
from being able to take more than one cut of a fodder crop in a given year if moisture
conditions were favourable.
The other benefit of this crop is the allelopathic capacity of the plant. Allelochemicals
are produced and released by the root system of the perennial rye into the soil solution.
These inhibit the growth of competing weeds and may even serve to prevent
germination of some species. Work is currently occurring in the EU looking at the
potential to exploit this natural plant trait to reduce the need for herbicide use. There is
no need to emphasise the potential for cost savings in this area if crops effectively
produced their own bioherbicides.
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Perennial Wheat
Figure 6. Doug Lammer, a wheat breeder from Washington State University,
and one of his advanced lines of perennial wheat.
Researchers such as Steve Jones and Doug Lammer at Washington State University
are busily selecting for stable perennial wheat lines. These are essentially produced by
crossing normal wheat cultivars (Triticum aestivum), with a perennial native grass called
Agropyron ponicum. Advanced cultivars are being evaluated in a glasshouse
environment and the sole breeding goal at this early stage is to breed a perennial line of
wheat that is stable and retains this trait in the field. In other words, the wheat must be
able to persist from year to year. Observations indicate that a plant that is able to keep
its leaves green is more likely to survive dormant periods. This is likely because sugars
are needed to fuel survival over this period.
Other agronomically important traits can then be easily transferred to ‘stable’ perennial
cultivars once they are developed. The main challenge for a perennial wheat cultivar will
lie in the area of disease resistance. Perennial wheat will be an ideal host for rust
diseases in particular and would provide a green bridge over the normally hostless
summer months in Australia. Biotechnology will almost certainly be needed to grant
quick, multi gene resistance to leaf diseases; ensuring pathogens have little chance of
breaking down varietal resistance to infection.
Similarly to perennial cereal rye, it may be possible for grazing to occur where
favourable seasonal conditions prevail.
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Perennial Chickpeas
Experience with perennial grain crops suggests that yields are significantly lower than
with annuals. It may be therefore more sensible to focus on producing perennial
cultivars of high valued crops where yield then becomes less important to the gross
margin of the enterprise. Claire Coyne from Washington State University is actively
working on domesticating a line of perennial chickpea (Cicer oxyodor) originally
collected from Turkey. Chickpeas are a highly valued leguminous crop important as a
staple protein source to a number of cultures throughout the world. Perenniality in this
legume could offer some significant agronomic advantages over its domesticated
annual cousin.
Illinois Bundleflower
A native legume of the Great Plains in the United States, this crop is in the early stages
of a selection and breeding program at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis to
domesticate it. The seed can be conventionally harvested and has been recorded as
yielding over a tonne indicating there is definitely potential in developing this crop.
The great concern in the US is that the soybean industry with its current irrigation
strategy will not be able to sustain production of these beans in drier areas in the future.
Some producers are pulling water from ancient aquifers as deep as 100m. The Ogillala
aquifer on the eastern side of the American Rocky Mountains was dropped by around
4m last year alone. This leguminous crop may well assume more of a role when water
becomes limiting for irrigation in the Western Great Plains.
What are the Challenges for Perennial Grain Crops?
The most obvious problem with perennial grain crops is the likelihood of providing a
‘green bridge’ for a number of serious fungal diseases such as rusts in wheat, mildews
in barley, and ascochyta in chickpeas to name a few. They could also offer year round
hosts for insect pests also and localise breeding grounds. This is where the use of
biotechnology will be essential to providing multigene resistance to diseases to ensure
varieties maintain their resilience to disease in the face of year round infection
pressures.
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The other major concern with perennial grain crops is their inability to yield as much as
annual varieties. Carbohydrates that are produced by the plant and normally end up in
the grain in annuals are needed by the perennial root system to survive dormant
periods, i.e. winter in the Northern Hemisphere and summer in the Southern
Hemisphere. This will likely be addressed in time as perennial plants should actually
have the ability to produce more carbohydrates in a year being able to grow all year.
The use of glyphosate would most likely not be possible within a perennial cropping
system as a broadly applied treatment. Glyphosate or glufosinate conferred resistance
via genetic modification would remove this problem and no doubt generate legitimate
concerns within the farming community as to subsequent manageability. It is important
to remember here that nothing is resistant to the plough.
Just how dry an environment can be before these varieties cannot persist will be an
important question for the Australian grains industry. The need to know this is definitely
there given the risk associated with sowing crops in more marginal areas.
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ENHANCING NATURAL PLANT DEFENCES AND
COMPETITIVENESS THROUGH BIOTECHNOLOGY
Allelopathy - Exploiting Natural Plant Defence Mechanisms
There has long been a knowledge of plant species possessing the ability to produce
biological chemicals, or allelochemicals which when released by roots into the soil
solution, effectively inhibit the growth and/or germination of competing plants. This is
known as allelopathy.
Such chemicals are common to most cereal crop species. A project co-ordinated from
Slagelse in Denmark, known as Fateallchem, seeks to analyse their environmental fate
and establish precautionary protocols for transgenic manipulation to enhance
competitive ability of wheat and barley. The project is headed by Inge Fomsgard and
seeks to understand the environmental fate of allelochemicals particularly in Denmark
where the nation’s water supply is derived from below the soil.
Allelochemicals in Cereal Crops
Rye exhibits the greatest allelopathic effect on successive crops as its residues break
down and release chemicals known as hydroxamic acids (HOA). The HOAs are toxic to
many weed species but appear to have more effect on broadleaf's. The same situation
is the case for wheat and highlights an area of opportunity for plant breeders to exploit
this natural competitive characteristic. HOAs are absent in cultivated barley, however
some wild species do produce these chemicals. This enables breeders access to the
genes necessary for a HOA synthesising cultivated barley.
Dealing with the Potential for Fungal Attack
Oat plants have the ability to produce saponins which are natural soaps, possessing
anti-bacterial and anti-fungal activity. The avenacin type of saponin found in oats has
been suggested as the reason why it is resistant to take-all. There exists the opportunity
here for introducing the ability for avenacin synthesis to other commercially important
crops such as wheat. Take-all is a common problem in high rainfall areas where
successive wheat crops are grown.
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Opportunities to Reduce Labour and Input Costs
The transgenic application of Bacillus thuringienses (Bt) gene to many crops around the
world is a great example of shifting the work load over to the crop itself. This gene is
very effective at preventing damage from caterpillar pests. The cotton industry in
Australia has embraced the benefit of utilising this gene and now has inserted a second
gene (stacking) for insect resistance to decrease the eventual likelihood of resistance
developing. Multi-gene resistance should be the goal of genetic modifications conferring
resistance to pests and disease.
It is extremely desirable to increase the allelopathic capacity of cereal cultivars in
Australia. For all commercial grain crops, there should be priority assigned to enhancing
and arming new cultivars genetically. The potential theoretically exists to reduce the
need for herbicides, with the plant itself becoming the producer and deliverer of a broad
spectrum bioherbicide.
Whilst the obvious potential cost saving would come in the form of reducing or removing
some of the input cost associated with herbicides, other benefits are also at hand. The
opportunity cost of late or ill timed herbicide application is immense to industry. This is
also the case with insect and disease management where late detection can easily
mean the difference between a good and a bad crop. It has been estimated that
between 20-40% of the world’s food production is lost to pests and pathogens (Mathias,
2003). Savings in labour demands and machinery costs could also be realised if
herbicide applications are reduced or eliminated. Environmentalists should be happy
with a system contributing less herbicide in the environment.
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WILD FOODS – INCREASING THE RESILIENCE OF AGRICULTURAL
SYSTEMS
Opportunities for Australian Agriculture
Native plants as alternative crop species can provide Australian arable cropping
systems with a wide range of benefits. Australian soils are old, weathered and generally
very poor. Alternatively where they are not poor, rainfall is quite often deficient. Plants
that yield fruits, nuts, timber, oils, pharmaceuticals and biomass, can be found in
Australia, and a great deal of them in the arid interior. Such native plants are hardy
survivors and well adapted to the poor soil fertility and extreme weather conditions.
These trees also had the ability to manage salty water tables which have risen
throughout the southern grain growing belt and given rise to dry land salinity.
The challenge is to identify those species which have the best economic potential whilst
dealing with the environmental problems inherent to the system of production today.
Australia has a great number of nitrogen fixing species in the Acacia genus (wattles)
which have potentially significant economic potential. This is important as they are the
drivers of fertility within the system and this process occurs independent of inputs,
especially given the fertility of soils is now generally higher than before land was
cleared.
Certain species of wattle are already commercially important for timber and also seed
production. Acacia melanoxylon (Blackwood) is a high value timber native to high
rainfall areas in Tasmania. Acacia victoreae (Gundabluey) is the most common species
with seed that is collected for the wild food industry. This tree grows in 250mm rainfall
and above, is long lived for a wattle (10-15 years) and has impressive levels of salt
tolerance. Whilst demand definitely exists for wattleseed in the food market, its
widespread consumption is inhibited by the high cost of manual harvesting.
Mechanisation of this process would allow economies of scale to be realised and the
product could then be offered at a more reasonable price to consumers.
The other benefit of the Acacia genus is that they are host trees for two particular
species from the Santalum genus. The sandalwood tree (Santalum spicatum) and the
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quandong (Santalum acuminatum) are commonly found all over Australia’s arid interior.
These trees parasitize the root system of neighbouring wattle trees and derive a large
percentage of their nitrogen requirements from them. Both Santalum species yield nuts
containing 60% oil and 18% protein, which is very important considering there are no
artificial fertilizer inputs required for this result. The quandong also has flesh
surrounding the nut which has an established though infant market. It is integral to the
shaping of an Australian culinary culture more attuned to the Australian environment.
The prospect of an economically significant dry land horticultural cropping system
including the aforementioned arid species seems logical with low input requirements
reducing the economic risks of production in potentially extreme seasons. Sandalwood
also has the added benefit of having a timber highly prized for its aromatic oil,
commonly used in the cosmetics industry.
The problem of declining rural populations could certainly have the biggest chance of
reversal with the establishment of dry land horticultural enterprises in broadacre
agricultural areas. Labour requirements would certainly be increased with intensification
in individual farming operations.
The level of biodiversity within Australian agricultural systems is very low. This lack of
diversity means that the resilience of crops to withstand attack by insect pests is also
very low. Beneficial insects require habitat in which to form base populations. From
these levels, they can quickly increase in number when pest infestations occur.
It is likely in the future as energy costs trend upwards that more and more agricultural
land will be taken out of food production and used in biomass accumulation for energy
generation. Biomass is an attractive proposition since it can be used as energy demand
dictates. This will present our agricultural systems with some interesting opportunities.
Energy production plants already exist in Western Australia that will be powered by
biomass from Eucalyptus species (mallees). Some Acacia species might also be
suitable for such end uses. Particularly those that are fast growing, coppice and/or have
suckering capacity. One such species is the manna gum (Acacia microbotrya), a native
to the Wheatbelt of Western Australia.
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The Wild Berry Industry of Sweden
The Swedish wild food model is unique in that all commercial supplies come from wild
harvest. Sweden is also unique in that it is an extremely affluent country having such a
sustainable cultural attachment to this natural resource. Around 20,000 tonnes of
lingonberries are harvested from the wild each year with this being just a small
percentage of the total probable production in Sweden’s forestry resource. Cultivation of
any of the indigenous species is rare owing to the huge natural resource that already
exists.
Harvesting techniques for these wild berries is not mechanised nor is it likely to be in the
future. Without access to cheap labour from eastern European countries such as
Poland, the associated labour cost of harvesting would make these berries far too
expensive for the average consumer.
Utilisation of wild berries and other fruit species is firmly entrenched within Swedish food
culture. The evolution of Australian food culture needs to be encouraged in a similar
direction in order to facilitate widespread agricultural adoption of wild food crops. A
unique food culture can then become an exportable commodity and many successful
examples of this exist, eg Italian and Greek. This also serves to enhance the cultural
experience tourists gain when they visit from overseas.
Wild Blueberries in Atlantic Canada
The wild blueberry industry of Atlantic Canada is an excellent example of the successful
commercialisation of a wild food plant. Dr Dave Percival from the Nova Scotia
Agricultural College was able to provide me with an excellent understanding of the
issues facing this emerging industry. The fruit is harvested from native forest areas
altered agronomically to favour increased berry production by removal of pine trees and
application of basic agronomy principles. The marketing strategy for the fruit is a model
to be followed for all wild food species. Although benefiting immensely from having
nutraceutical qualities being the world’s highest source of antioxidants, the wild
blueberry has a more intense flavour which has not been diluted by irrigation and
excessive artificial fertilization. This is a common characteristic of all wild foods
including game meats – enhanced flavour, colour and nutritional benefits.
Input costs for this production system once the blueberries are established are very low
owing to the blueberry’s adaptation to the maritime environment. Soils are very similar
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to most areas of Australia being very acidic, highly phosphorus retentive and high in iron
and toxic aluminium. These are soil conditions that normally require high phosphatic
fertilizer rates and remediation via application of lime. The blueberry is similar to a great
many arid Australian native plants in its ability to produce is such poor soil health.
The most important development in this industry was the mechanisation of the
harvesting process, which slashed production costs. Producers would not have been
able to survive without this development. This will be an essential key for wild food
producers in Australia if increased demand is to be created.
The wild blueberry industry is coordinated cooperatively as an organisation called the
Wild Blueberry Association of North America (WBANA). This federation of growers and
processors commissioned a public relations campaign that aimed to achieve a number
of marketing goals:
1. Creating and enhancing the image of wild blueberries over conventionally produced
blueberries. This fruit today has the enviable reputation as being the number one
antioxidant fruit in the world. Wild blueberries possess inherently more antioxidants
than conventionally farmed blueberries.
2. Creating and maintaining wild blueberry demand. Research was commissioned and
conducted by independent research scientists to further expand on existing
knowledge of the phytochemicals contained within the wild blueberry. This allowed
industry to catch the wave of interest in nutraceutical foods that came in the late
1990s.
3. Creating a premium perception of wild production. A memorable brand identity was
created using a set of product differentiators referred to as “The Wild Advantage”.
This was to educate those in the food processing industry as to why they should use
wild over conventional.
The use of the media played a pivotal role in achieving all of these goals, although a
number of other information and marketing techniques also helped create demand for
wild blueberries:
1. Media relations, special events and promotions were selected to achieve marketing
goals. This involved identifying appropriate food writers and producers of trade and
consumer publications, radio and television programs across North America.
2. Major trade shows were attended facilitating information extension regarding
superior nutritional characteristics, processing techniques, and availability.
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3. Harvest festivals were used as a focus to encourage media interest and sow cultural
seeds for the future of the industry. The festivals offered tours of orchards showing
harvesting techniques, processing plants and cooking demonstrations.
Interestingly the environmental merits of wild blueberry production are not central to the
marketing plan, probably as fields are established by effectively clearing remnant
vegetation and farmed in a conventional manner. Nevertheless, the marketing plan
used by WBANA is an excellent example of effective consumer education and the
associated product demand that was generated.
For the Australian wild food industry, the achievable environmental gains from
production would clearly be a marketable attribute particularly where these benefits
could be quantified. The three aforementioned crops of Acacia, Sandalwood and
Quandong have strong environmental and potentially economic benefits over broad
acre grain crops.
Wild Foods of the Canadian Prairies
A number of wild food crops have been evaluated in Saskatchewan, the heart of the
Canadian Prairies. Of these, the Saskatoon (Amelanchiar alnifolia) and Chokecherry
(Prunus virginiana) appear to have the most potential and already commercial groves of
saskatoons are producing significant quantities of fruit. As with the wild blueberry,
mechanisation of the harvest process for saskatoons has enabled cost effective
production of this berry.
Similarly to other wild food crops, inputs costs after establishment are low owing to
adaptation to soil and weather conditions. Irrigation is commonly supplied, however dry
land production is possible where planting densities are significantly lower and moisture
conservation is encouraged through effective weed control. This technique is common
to dry land olive production in the Mediterranean where tree spacings may be as large
as ten by ten metres.
The greatest environmental problem created through annual grain production in the
Prairies is soil erosion. Perennial tree crops such as the Saskatoon and Chokecherry
enable producers to manage this problem with their robust, suckering root systems
whilst providing economic incentive in berry production.
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CONCLUSION
The future of the Australian grains industry is yet to be written. We have the benefit of
both hindsight and foresight in determining where we collectively take this industry. To
think we can continue to produce forever the way we currently do would most certainly
be a dangerous attitude to have. On the other hand to be open to future developments
no matter how unfamiliar they may seem will be essential.
Australia’s importance in the supply of food in the world will continue to increase as
populations increase. Our current reliance to a great extent on some markets in the
Middle East could be seen to be very risky with bulk commodities like wheat particularly
in light of the current global situation. On the other hand protein and oil are far more
valuable commodities that will be more easily marketed in ‘safer’, premium markets.
The three most immediate areas where sustainable and profitable gains can be realised
in the Australian grains industry in my view are as follows. Firstly, a lupin crop as
profitable and agronomically as desirable as a cereal or canola crop must be developed.
It will not be found, it will need to be bred. And secondly, profitable perennial grain crops
must be also bred and developed in conjunction with other breeding programs running
around the world. Thirdly and finally, commercialisation of the sandalwood nut must
occur to secure oil and protein production potential in a future of increasing energy
prices.
Aaron Edmonds ‘Sustainable Cropping Practises’ Sponsored by LANDMARK AWB
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RECOMMENDATIONS
New lupin cultivars must be bred that can compete with and join in the economic
success enjoyed by the soybean. This means the following:
1. First and foremost oil must constitute around 18%, or higher if possible, of the
seed weight. This will most likely involve making interspecific crosses between
Lupinus angustifolius and Lupinus mutabilis.
2. Fibre levels must be reduced from 25% down to 15% or lower to in effect
concentrate the levels of protein and oil contained in the seed.
3. The oil composition of the new lupin will need to be high in oleic fatty acids and
low in linolenic fatty acids.
4. Sulphur based amino acids need to be included in the seed protein.
5. Transgenic gains should be embraced where the whole process can be
accelerated.
Perennial grain breeding needs to become a part of mainstream breeding programs.
Where possible work should be done in conjunction with international research efforts to
avoid duplication of the costs associated with such breeding programs. A leguminous
perennial oilseed, such as a perennial grain lupin, might be the ultimate crop to aim for
in the longer term. Perennial cereals though should be targeted a well. Background
genetics from wild perennial Australian genera should be utilised where possible to
obtain physiological traits adapted to this harsh climate. Australia is home to many
perennial grasses and wild relatives of mung beans and soybeans.
Sandalwood (Santalum spicatum) will need to become an important industry to southern
grain growing areas of Australia. Mechanisation of nut harvesting and soybean style
processing for oil extraction leaving protein meal are essential for t
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37
REFERENCES
Guterl, F. (2003) Troubled Seas. Newsweek July 14, 2003, pp 46-51.
Mathias, R. (2003) Using natural plant defences. BBSRC Business. July 2003, pp 21-
23.
Montaigne, F. (2003) Atlantic Salmon. National Geographic Vol. 204, No. 1, July 2003,
pp 100-123.
Pauly, D & Watson, R. (2003) Counting the Last Fish. Scientific American July 2003, pp
34-39.