Weekly Agribusiness News Recap

By: "Farm Tender" News
Hay & Fodder News
Jul 18, 2019
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By Georgia Devenish - Agricultural Research Analyst at JLL.

Agribusiness

Elders Limited has announced a $157 million takeover of rural supplies wholesaler, Australian Independent Rural Retailers (AIRR). Elders will also take care of AIRR's existing $30 million ,debt. It's a strategic step for Elders towards keeping pace with Canadian conglomerate Nutrien since they announced their entry into a binding agreement with Ruralco Holdings Limited in February 2019. Elders managing director, Mark Allison, said if both deals were approved, “it would make us clear one and two”.

Australian fresh produce group, Nutrano, has confirmed it has taken an equity stake in Griffith-based citrus packing operator Keenan Produce. George Haggar, CEO of Nutrano Produce Group, stated, “with Nutrano and Keenan Produce joining forces, an opportunity is created to ramp up the citrus program in the Riverina region both domestically and for export." Nutrano's farming footprint covers more than 2,000 hectares, in addition to operating its own packing sheds, ripening and logistics facilities.

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Rifa Salutary, the Australian arm of Hangzhou-based manufacturing and investment giant, Zhejiang Rifa Holding Group, has listed its stake in Australian agriculture. The company's 44,000 hectare footprint, spread across Victoria and New South Wales and a portfolio of 14 properties, has been accumulated over the period since its first purchase in 2014. The director of Rifa Salutary and Vice President of Rifa Holding Group, Bobby Jiang, said the company felt the time was right to capture value as a result of completed expenditure and improvement programs, combined with the growth in land value.

Agtech

DIT Technologies, based out of Toowoomba in Queensland, has received Federal Government funding to help commercialise its animal supplement technology. The technology focuses on improving animal welfare in the Australian live export industry. The company’s uCalm supplement has been trialled in cattle exports over the past 12 months. The mix of electrolytes, proteins, glucose and other elements are distributed through the animal’s water systems via a machine, which is able to read and measure the animal’s supplement intake while travelling to overseas markets.

Ballandean-based Kool Country Packers is set to install Australia’s first blemish, colour and weight tomato recognition system. The Southern Downs-based company has received $250,000 in state government funding as part of the Rural Economic Development (RED) Grant program. Director of Kool Country Packers, David Andreatta, said the purchase of the grading technology would allow the business to keep up with consumer trends and increase their daily throughput.

Port Lincoln in South Australia is home to a thriving bluefin tuna industry worth up to $300 million. A break through in technology could see the industry overcome the seasonal limitations of availability of the fish through new freezing techniques. Spurred by growing domestic demand for sashimi, Dinko Tuna Farmers owner, Lukina Lukin, has spent two years and more than $1.5 million developing a liquid nitrogen freezing and tuna processing facility at her Port Lincoln factory. Not only could the technology allow locally sourced southern bluefin tuna to be found on restaurant menus all year round, it could also be instrumental in helping the industry break into the Chinese market because it would guarantee a continuity of supply.

Solar

Italian-owned oil and gas company, Eni Australia, purchased the Northern Territory's largest solar farm from Epuron in February 2019. The $40 million project spread across a 70 hectare site near Katherine is expected to be completed later this year. The deal is expected to boost renewable energy use in the Northern Territory by up to 4 percent. This development supports the Northern Territory Government's commitment to 50 percent renewable energy by 2030.

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The attractiveness of the Northern Territory for solar development has been in the news of late. In late June 2019 a proposal to build a 10 gigawatt solar array that will take up 15,000 hectares when it starts production in the mid-2020s was announced. If completed, it will become the largest solar project in the world.

The proposal hinges on plans to supply Singapore with renewable energy from a site at Tennant Creek. Sun Cable, the company looking to develop the farm, is hoping to supply approximately one-fifth of Singapore's electricity through solar power transmitted via a High Voltage Direct Current cable. Community consultation will begin in 2020.

Wine/Viticulture

Despite industry estimates suggesting the Australian winegrape crush for 2019 could fall by as much as 10-20 percent on 2018 volumes, the estimated 1.73 million tonne crush fell only one percent below the ten-year average. According to the National Vintage Report 2019 released by Wine Australia this week, the lower yields were balanced by higher grape prices with 2019 being the fifth consecutive vintage where the average purchase price for winegrapes has increased.

Podcast of the Week

The 'Agtech: So What?' podcast series shares stories of innovators working at the intersection of agriculture and technology. The 'AgTech So What' Podcast is an initiative of AgThentic, a food and agriculture strategy and advisory firm.

The most recent theme focused on in the series has been 'Agtech Ready'. In its final installment, host Sarah Nolat speaks to Andrew Whitlock, founder of Precision Agriculture. Andrew shares insights from his journey from agronomist to farmer and finally to founder of a precision agriculture business.