just wonder how other grain investors view this Super Sorghum .
thanks in advance
Letter from the CEO
To the shareholders Tuesday, 22 July 14
THE FUTURE OF A1 INVESTMENTS & RESOURCES
It is with much pleasure that I enclose a Notice of a Special General Meeting of the Company on 26 August 2014. I welcome your attendance but if you cannot attend please complete the proxy and return it to the company before 10 am on Friday 22 August 2014.
New SuperSorghum Business
The Company has secured a major opportunity to be involved at an early stage in a new agricultural business for Australia, the sale and distribution of hybrid sorghum seeds known as SuperSorghum.
The Meeting agenda contains a number of resolutions that all relate directly and indirectly to the new business venture. Our Japanese partners, Sol Holdings have the worldwide rights to over 1000 hybrid varieties of sorghum and the continuing development of these hybrids.
Most sorghum is known as sweet sorghum and is grown primarily as feed stock. SuperSorghum has been developed over many years to include highly developed sorghum varieties with high sugar or biomass content. The sugar varieties are designed to provide a replacement crop for sugar cane and the biomass varieties are designed for ethanol production although the sugar varieties can also be used for ethanol production. Our primary focus is on highly developed technical farming that produces either sugar or biomass. In the short term the focus in Australia is upon those varieties that are capable of replacing or supplementing;
1. Sugar cane for sugar production or
2. Grain sorghum for ethanol production.
Test planting of SuperSorghum by Sol Holdings in Indonesia indicated SuperSorghum can produce triple the output of sugar per hectare as compared to sugar cane on the same land. SuperSorghum is also a hardly plant capable of producing excellent yields on more marginal land than has traditionally been used for sugar cane. Farming techniques to maximise production yields are in essence the same as sugar cane, with farming equipment available for use by either crop. Best sorghum yields take place on irrigated lands and the focus of A1 for the future in northern Queensland is the replacement of sugar cane with SuperSorghum. In southern central Queensland particularly on the Darling Downs we are focused upon substituting SuperSorghum for existing grain sorghum on non irrigated land in relation to the production of ethanol.
Our initial target is 1000 hectares under cultivation within 12 months and 2-3,000 hectares within 2 years. Our initial target represents less than 1% of the total area under sorghum cultivation supplying grain sorghum to the Dalby ethanol plant.
Our stage 1 plan sees A1 operating as a seed wholesaler and business support company. Within a short period Stage 2 includes A1 acting as a contract principal engaging farmers on a contract farming basis, with A1 owning the crop and participating in the sugar, ethanol and stock feed production directly.
