This week's roundup: A Rich Lister pivots from cars to crops, global politics tightens its grip on ag markets, large tractors kick off 2026 with momentum, and higher rates push farmers toward sharper cost control and smarter strategy. Plus, fresh listings, auction dates, and more from across Australian ag. Let's get into it →

Why Rich Lister Tony Denny Swapped Used Cars for Farming

Former car dealer and property developer Tony Denny has turned his focus to agriculture, marking a new chapter in his diverse business career. After building his fortune in Europe’s used-car market, Denny is now a key investor in the ASX-listed crop-nutrient company RLF Agtech.

A qualified horticulturalist, Denny believes boosting food production and sustainability will be vital in the coming decades. He sees “smart” crop nutrients as central to improving yields, soil health, and water retention, while also opening opportunities for farmers to earn income through carbon credits.

Aside from a small NSW farm, RLF is Denny’s main agricultural investment. The Perth-based company, which was listed in April last year, already operates across Asia, including a manufacturing base and workforce in China. Its Australian-developed technology aims to reduce reliance on bulk fertilisers while improving crop performance.

RLF services a wide range of growers, from grains and cotton to livestock producers, and is targeting large-scale Australian operations. The company has also launched a 5,000-hectare pilot program to generate Australian carbon credit units under the federal Emissions Reduction Fund.

Denny says carbon credits could benefit most broadacre farmers, strengthening both the agricultural sector and the national economy, while positioning RLF as a strong Australian R&D and export success story.

Australia’s export-focused sectors — including grains, oilseeds, and beef — are set to face a more complex and volatile environment in 2026. Shifting trade policies, changing import rules, and strong global competition are expected to limit upside in prices, placing greater emphasis on cost control, timing, and risk management.

According to CBA’s Director of Sustainable and Agricultural Economics, Dennis Voznesenski, governments are playing a more active role in agricultural markets through trade policy, biofuel regulation, and food security strategies — thereby reducing the market’s traditional response to supply shocks such as drought.

Key themes for 2026:

The bottom line:
2026 will be less about chasing higher prices and more about managing volatility. Diversifying markets, monitoring policy changes, and maintaining cost discipline will be critical for Australian producers navigating the year ahead.

Large tractors start 2026 in strong style:
Large tractors have started the new year by recording a significant sales lift, according to Tractor & Machinery Association figures

Large tractors in the 200hp plus range led the way in January with a sales increase of 42.2 per cent compared to the same month last year.

The next largest category – 100-200hp – also recorded an 8.4 per cent jump on the same month last year.

With January being a relatively quiet month on the sales front, a total of approximately 500 tractors were sold across the country, which was 7 per cent behind the same month in 2025.

Western Australia had a big lift of 30.2 per cent on its January 2025 sales, while Tasmania was up by 26.7 per cent, and the small market ofthe Northern Territory posted a 142.9 per cent spike.

In a complete turnaround from December, smaller tractor sales were very quiet, which drove a decline in unit sales.

As previously reported, tractor sales for 2025 were the lowest reported for more than ten years.

While the industry is not expecting a return to boom times, there is a general feeling that the bottom has already been hit and that gradual improvements can be expected.

This week, Australian farmers are adjusting to a confirmed increase in the official cash rate, a move that’s already sharpening conversations around cost control, timing and finance structures across the sector.

While the rate rise was widely anticipated, its impact is now becoming real. Variable lending costs are edging higher, overdrafts are becoming more expensive, and banks are reassessing risk across business lending. For farm businesses operating on tight seasonal margins, even small changes in interest costs can influence decisions around stocking, input purchases and capital upgrades.

At the same time, conditions on the ground remain mixed. Some regions are pushing ahead with planting and infrastructure work after recent rainfall, while others continue to manage dry conditions and rising feed and transport costs. Across both cropping and livestock operations, farmers are increasingly focused on efficiency gains — equipment that reduces downtime, transport that lowers per-unit costs, and infrastructure that improves labour productivity.

What’s changing this season is how those investments are approached. With interest rates higher, many producers are prioritising certainty and cashflow flexibility over simply chasing the lowest headline cost. Fixed or structured asset finance, staged upgrades and equipment replacement rather than repair are all coming back into focus.

This is where specialist support can make a difference. Pay In Time Finance works quietly with Australian farmers to structure machinery, vehicle and equipment funding in a way that aligns with seasonal income and operational cycles — helping reduce pressure on working capital at a time when liquidity matters most.

As rates rise and conditions remain unpredictable, the farms that plan ahead and stay financially nimble will be best placed to keep moving forward this season.

Visit Pay In Time Finance

The sale day is usually when the money comes in. Naturally, it deserves attention, and most of the year’s preparation funnels toward those dates. 

What tends to happen, though, is that the months on either side go quiet. The website sits largely unchanged, and there is little outward signal of what is happening in the program. Then, six weeks out from the sale, activity ramps up all at once. Posts increase. Emails go out. The catalogue becomes the centre of everything.

From your side of the fence, that feels focused and practical. From a new buyer’s side, it means they are being asked to evaluate your operation with very little prior exposure.

You already know, at least instinctively, that buyers do not start thinking about your program in sale week. By the time the catalogue arrives, many of them have already formed a working view. 

They may have heard your name mentioned in passing months earlier. They may have seen a mid-year performance update or noticed a client result shared online. Some will quietly look you up well before sale season just to see how you present yourself and whether the program aligns with their direction.

None of those moments triggers an immediate purchase. What they do is lower uncertainty. They create a sense of familiarity. So, when the sale day arrives, the buyer is not starting from zero. They are confirming a view that has been forming over time.

If your stud is only visible in a concentrated burst around catalogue season, all of that familiarity has to be built in a few weeks. That usually shows up as more explaining, more background conversations and more reassurance late in the process.

Year-round visibility does not mean constant posting. It means steady signals.
In practical terms, this translates as:

If sale prep feels heavier each year, it may be carrying too much on its own. If you want to map a simple, steady visibility plan that supports your next catalogue instead of scrambling around it, that is work we do at RD Creative Studio.

📧 [email protected]

G’day REALM Readers,

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE SMOKO?
There's something sacred about smoko on a cattle station - whether it's out on stockcamp, fencing or back at the homestead. It's not just a tea break – it can be a moment of respite in a long, dusty day... have a yarn, a chance to go over the morning's tasks or further plan for the day; and often one of the highlights of the day that gets you through to knock-off time.

We asked the RFTTE community on Facebook to share their best smoko memories, and the responses poured in like billy tea. From pufftaloons dripping with golden syrup to corned beef sandwiches under a Coolibah tree, anyone would think cattle station staff had Michelin Star chefs cooking for them - and I reckon some do!

The names that came up again and again in the comments: Barb Strickland earned multiple shout-outs as 'the best station cook ever'. Elizabeth Anne Kelly was praised for everything from jelly slice to beef stroganoff. Kaylene Bambrick at Tobermorey Station made marshmallow slices and 'cute little 3-layered sandwiches' that are still remembered by station staff years later.

Wendy Cox cooks up some cracking meals for the team at Tipperary Station, NT - they've become the stuff of legend. There's Wendy above showing off some of her homemade bread rolls at Tipperary... and that's one of Wendy's smoko's too.

And of course, there is Karen Smith, who has been cooking on stations including Auvergne, Newry, Tipperary, Camfield and Newcastle Waters; and currently working on a station in QLD. She is famous for her 'Pie in the Sky' for cattle station pilots (see image above), and of course her sumptuous smoko's for the ground crew too!

One for me personally was the Vanilla Slice (aka 'Snot Block') that Michael Byers (or 'Cooky'.. of course) would make at smoko for the Carlton Hill crew in the early 1990's - his smoko at the station was fit for a king... from smoked spare ribs to chocolate cake, he had it all...

On a few trips with Gus Rose taking horses to cattle stations in his road train - we had a couple of stay overs at Nerrima Station in the West Kimberley - and were always warmly greeted and looked after by Managers, Chris and Bec Morrow (and little Georgina); Gus and I would always put on a few 'kegs' after being very well fed by the Nerrima Cook, Poppy Spurling. 

And I know there are plenty more... So here's cheers to all the cooks out there...Thank you!

You can add your favourite smoko and cook on the FB thread, read the BLOG: The Best Smoko You've Ever Had: Station Cooks & Their Legendary Feeds or email us at [email protected]

Check out the latest jobs at rfttejobs.com

Hooroo for now,
Simon Cheatham
Founder RFTTE - The Online Campfire
0417 277 488 | [email protected]