Agribusiness and farming in Western Australia – a sector under siege?

Navigating the future: the evolving landscape of WA farming

Western Australian farmers face numerous challenges farming in our state. Environmental factors such as extreme weather conditions, climate change, drought, water scarcity, as well as biosecurity, pests and disease outbreaks can all pose serious threats to the agribusiness industry.

Peter Nash, executive officer of the Grains Industry Association of WA (GIWA), has seen a shift in the agricultural landscape, noted in the recent GIWA Crop Report. There have been detrimental impacts from climate change impacting the environment, but fortunately improvements in technology and plant breeding continue to see productivity trending upwards.

“Fortunately, we continue to see productivity gains through plant breeding and improved technologies, for example variable rate fertiliser application and green-on-green herbicide application, and farmers are achieving better yields and better profitability through the rapid adoption of these new technologies,” Mr Nash noted.

He added there are now multiple avenues for farmers to go through for information and advice, which gets costly and complicated. “The agriculture landscape has changed from previously where the Department of Agriculture was the primary source of information for most farmers, to today where there are multiple avenues to obtain information and most farmers now have close relationships with private sector agronomists, farm business advisers and grain marketers. Farmers rely on these advisors to be absolutely up-to-date in their respective fields and to work out and then advise their clients on what is best for that their particular situation,” Mr Nash said. 

A 2023 Roy Morgan survey of Australian farmers noted the key issues farmers are facing range from extreme weather conditions, climate change, natural disasters and biosecurity, to staffing issues, rising interest rates, and the financial viability of farming.

The Roy Morgan Farmer Agribusiness Survey showed the biggest challenge facing almost one in two (49 per cent) of the 1002 Australian farmers surveyed was economic uncertainty, with concerns of global economic conditions and the rising cost of doing business.

“Farming has become increasingly technical and complex, and you’ve got to do it so well because the margins are tight and seasonal variability is increasing,” Mr Nash said.

A proud grain farmer of almost 30 years from Beverley, Alan Sattler from WA Grains noted the high cost of replacing machinery. “We can’t afford to go out and buy new machinery. For a family farm the size of ours we have to go out and buy second-hand, and instead of buying new machinery, we’ve got to fix it,” he said.

“Interest rates, companies pushing carbon neutral and ESG, are pushing more costs back onto farmers. Regulators and government control, staffing issues and IR laws impact the productivity of agricultural land, and cost of production is outstripping return,” Mr Sattler added.

Tony Seabrook, president of the Pastoral and Graziers Association, who has been actively involved with PGA for more than 40 years and started his farming career in York in 1968, agreed. “We’ve got a big piece of gear sitting on the ramp at home right now all in pieces because we’re rebuilding it, because I can’t justify the replacement costs.” he said.

On top of rising costs stemming from supply chain issues and interest rate hikes, Mr Seabrook puts government policy and regulations just as high on the list of challenges.

“I’m farming as hard as I can, but productivity gains are finite. The biggest competitor I have in the marketplace for labour, services and contractors at the moment is the government,” Mr Seabrook added.

The survey showed the greatest challenge for 41 per cent of surveyed farmers in WA was government policy, up from just 7 per cent in 2022. Farmers concerned about the impact of government policy has doubled nationally but increased by almost six times in Western Australia.

Steven Stanbrook, of Westside Insurance, said the increased costs and pressures impact everyone in the industry, including the insurers. “You’d like to think that we could come together and cooperate with each other and come up with a grand plan and we all fight for the same direction. Unfortunately that seems to be almost impossible, even though we believe we’re all on the same page and all pushing the same barrow,” he said.