F E A T U R E D

Farmers have responded with concern to the Elders' intention to buy Delta Ag, one of its main agribusiness competitors. 

Assistant Minister for Competition Andrew Leigh says farmers are vulnerable and already face input and output pressures. 

What's next? 

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has delayed its response to the merger and is seeking additional information.

A proposed merger between agribusiness giant Elders and rival Delta Ag has the farming community concerned about access to competitive pricing on farming essentials like chemicals and fertiliser.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is reviewing the purchase and originally planned to announce its decision yesterday, however, it has delayed the announcement to seek more information.

Elders operates 245 agricultural retail stores across Australia and is valued at $1.37 billion.

Its purchase of Delta Ag, announced in November, was valued at $475 million.

Delta Ag runs 68 stores across Australia, with most of its locations in Western Australia and New South Wales.

In some regional towns, the two rival stores are the only options for farmers buying supplies. One of those towns is the NSW regional centre of Trangie, around an hour west of Dubbo. Farmer Peter Wilson frequently goes between the stores to find the best prices for chemicals or equipment.

Mr Wilson said the merger might mean he needed to look further afield to buy bulk supplies.

"After the merger, I won't have the option to get quotes and go with the cheapest.

"If I want competition, then I've got to go further afield to places like Peak Hill or Dubbo.

"I might get a cheaper price there, but then I've got the cost of my travel."

When picking between Elders and Delta Ag, Mr Wilson said he could find price differences of up to 10 per cent.

"If I'm buying thousands of litres of chemicals, even [that] can make quite a difference in dollars," he said.

The average Australian farm spent $670,000 on chemicals and fertiliser combined in 2023, according to the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics.

The spike in prices from 2022 has been attributed to the war in Ukraine.

NSW Farmers vice president Rebecca Reardon said her organisation, along with several other farming associations, made submissions to the ACCC against the deal.

"If you look at Australia, agriculture is a story of duopolies and monopolies, and farmers are getting it not only at the supply end but at the retailer as well," she said.

"Farmers are really getting squeezed at both ends by a lack of competition."

Same story, different state

In Western Australia, the concerns were echoed by Grains Producers Australia (GPA), which has welcomed the ACCC's decision to delay its judgment.

Earlier in the year, the GPA opposed the deal in a submission to the ACCC, with concerns of a "creeping tide of consolidation" entering Australia's rural supply markets.

GPA board member Duncan Young farms in Beverley in the Wheatbelt region, 133 kilometres south-east of Perth, and is in the same position as Peter Wilson.

"We only have an Elders and Delta Ag store; if the merger goes ahead, it'll solely be an Elders and then the next option is Nutrian in York, another 30 kilometres away," he said.

"Delta is the only major independent in the system, and suddenly we'll be down to the two large players — Nutrian and Elders.

"Hence, you're in a duopoly a bit like Coles and Woolies, to be frank."

Mr Beverley said, unlike other states, Western Australia did not have such a strong presence of independent stores to offer alternative options.

"While that may change, they don't have any distribution stores here," he said.

"I can see it, maybe it might build up in time, but we can't switch from one to another right now."

Independents optimistic

One of the organisations hoping to benefit from the merger is National Rural Independents (NRI), which represents 158 independent agricultural retail outlets across Australia. NRI national business manager Kerryn Hayes said he expected some stores to splinter off from Elders and become independent if the ACCC set merger conditions requiring Elders to sell off some of its stores.

"[If the purchase goes ahead], there will be some opportunities for people in those organisations who may want to go out and start their own independent businesses … employees moving from one camp to the next," Mr Hayes said.

"I'm really comfortable that we'll pick up a fair few … new businesses over the next 18 months."

Competition sandwich

Assistant Minister for Competition Andrew Leigh said farmers already had limited options for where to buy and sell their products.

"Farming itself is a pretty competitive industry, but upstream and downstream, farmers face monopolies," Dr Leigh said.

"If you look upstream from farmers, you find concentrated markets in areas like fertiliser and building or garden supplies, and if you look downstream, you see concentrated markets for processing, freight and retailing."

In a statement, Elders said the operation of Delta Ag would not be altered by the proposed acquisition, and it would take a "light touch" integrating the business.

"All decision-making at Elders is underpinned by an ambition to provide the best service for our clients and customers, and the acquisition of Delta supports that," managing director and chief executive Mark Allison said.

Thanks, GGABC

Agriculture remains a cornerstone of the Australian economy, and 2025 is shaping up to be a year of both opportunity and disruption. A strong domestic economy and shifting global trade dynamics are playing out across rural Australia, where export turnover for goods surged by 26% in February. Meat exports led the way, buoyed by resilient demand and a historically tight labour market that’s helping producers find the skilled hands they need to keep operations running efficiently.

At the same time, monetary policy has turned a corner. With inflation forecast to average just 2.7% this year, the Reserve Bank of Australia began easing rates earlier in 2025. For many in agriculture, this means lower borrowing costs and new opportunities to invest in productivity-boosting equipment and agri-tech solutions. Still, uncertainty remains. Ongoing inflationary pressures overseas—especially from renewed U.S. protectionism and a slowing Chinese economy—may limit further rate cuts.

Roughly 70% of Australian agricultural output is exported, leaving local producers highly sensitive to global headwinds. In particular, the return of Donald Trump to the White House has seen the reintroduction of U.S. tariffs, including a 10% duty on Australian imports. That’s a significant blow, especially given that the U.S. accounted for over 300,000 tons, or about 31%, of Australian beef exports in 2024. Wine shipments are also feeling the pressure, now at their lowest levels in over two decades.

Yet amid the challenges, new opportunities are emerging. China's retaliatory measures against the U.S. have opened fresh demand for Australian goods. Almond exports have skyrocketed, now making up nearly 70% of China’s imported supply, compared to less than 1% during Trump’s earlier term. Fruit producers are also gaining ground, with a landmark agreement now allowing mainland apples to be exported to China starting in late April.

In such an unpredictable environment, access to the right financial advice and lending options is critical. Lenders need to align their support with the seasonal rhythms of farming and provide timely, clear insights to help producers make confident decisions. It’s why working with finance specialists who understand the sector, like Pay In Time – Finance, where you're dealing with real farmers that can make all the difference.

WEEKLY AUCTION DATES – 2025

1.)30^th May 2025 2.) 3^rd June 2025 3.) 20^th June 2025

Ag Machinery

A South Australian farmer and engineer has created farm machinery that destroys weed seeds during harvest. Weeds like annual ryegrass and wild radish cost Australian crop farmers around $3.3 billion each year.

What's next?

The family business has received funding from the federal government to export into overseas markets.

"Innovative" machinery that destroys weed seeds during harvest is helping crop farmers make herbicide-resistant pest plants a problem of the past.

Weeds cost Australia's crop farming industry around $3.3 billion each year in management costs and yield losses, according to the University of Adelaide's Weed Management Research Group.

Determined to find a solution to herbicide-resistant weeds, Kangaroo Island farmer and engineer Nick Berry built a mean, green, weed-destroying machine, aptly named the Seed Terminator. In 2016, Dr Berry began manufacturing the farm technology with his uncle, Mark Ashenden.

"The herbicide resistance of weeds is a well-known fact, but there's nothing resistant to Australian steel," Mr Ashenden said.

"Our mechanical device sits at the back of the harvester, and all the chaff and weed seeds go through a multi-stage hammer mill."

The steel mill spins up to 3,000 revolutions per minute, leaving weed seeds crushed, ground and unviable.

"Basically, we smash the bejesus out of it," he said.

Mr Ashenden said up to 80 per cent of weed seeds in a paddock will be picked up by a combine harvester. Of that 80 per cent, the Seed Terminator has been independently tested to kill up to 99 per cent of annual ryegrass, and 100 per cent of wild radish, wild oats and brome grass.

Weeds threaten the country's broadacre crop industry, which the Australian Bureau of Statistics gave a farm gate value of $28.9 billion for the 2022-23 financial year.

The University of Adelaide Weed Management Research Group's Professor Christopher Preston said Dr Berry's machinery has the added benefit of protecting the soil.

"This has been quite innovative technology," Dr Preston said.

"We've had other practices where farmers have burnt their weed seeds and straw, and it leaves the soil bare, and you've got opportunities then for erosion over the summertime."

Mr Ashenden said the team currently builds less than 200 machines annually, but aims to export 1,000 each year by 2028.

"The jobs we've created to date are about 150, and we'll add another 300 jobs over the next four years," Mr Ashenden said.

The family business has received a $3.1 million grant from the federal government's Industry Growth Program to export into European and North American markets.

"Manufacturing creates secure, well-paying jobs," federal Industry and Science Minister Ed Husic said.

"That's why we're backing it, it's important that Australia is a country that makes things."

For Mr Ashenden, helping Australian farmers has been one of the most rewarding parts.

"They're saving time and saving money [and] they're leaving their land in a better place than what it was before," he said.

Thanks SL.

Input Costs

Input costs and trends

Despite some growth in retail sales dollar value, Australian vegetable growers remain under extreme cost pressures, with recent data also revealing a significant drop in farmgate returns.

Last month, AUSVEG released its latest Vegetable Industry Sentiment Survey results, where two-thirds of growers indicated they would stop growing vegetables if the right exit strategy arose.

Half of the growers surveyed said they were financially worse off than a year ago, and 40 per cent said they expected to be even worse off next year. The relentless margin squeeze created by the rising cost of production and challenges securing viable returns is a leading cause.

As growers continue grappling with major cost challenges, the most recent NielsenIQ figures show total vegetable retail sales value rose 7.3 per cent in the year to the end of January 2025, or $457m in dollar terms, against a 0.6 per cent drop in volume. Retail prices were 8.1 per cent higher than the year before on a month-by-month basis.

As vegetable growers know, higher retail prices do not necessarily equate to higher returns for vegetable growing businesses.

The recently released Horticulture Statistics Handbook affirmed the major cost pressures affecting vegetable growers, revealing a $140 million decrease in the overall farmgate value of vegetables produced in Australia during 2023-24, despite an increase in production volume. That translated to an 8 per cent drop in returns to growers for 2023-24.

ABARES is forecasting the vegetable industry’s farmgate value will rebound to $5.88 billion in 2024-25, just over 2022-23 levels in dollar terms. However, in real terms, after CPI, this equates to a 6 per cent or $355 million decrease compared to 2022-23.

While ABARES has forecast dollar value increases in vegetable industry production for successive years until 2029-30, it does not predict that farmgate value will return to 2022-23 levels in real terms within that timeframe.

AUSVEG has continued to publicly advocate on this issue, featuring in recent high-profile media, emphasising that the cost-of-production crisis and poor returns are continuing to threaten vegetable grower viability and Australia’s future supply of fresh vegetable produce.

Fertiliser

Strong demand for nitrogen fertiliser has pushed up prices globally, particularly from India, as have rising natural gas prices, which have risen on the back of cold weather in the Northern Hemisphere.

The high price of phosphorus fertiliser, driven by supply limitations, has limited purchases, meanwhile. IFPRI predicts exports from China will remain limited through to at least the end of the first quarter, meaning no significant changes to global phosphate markets in the next few months.

Seasonal demand from Australia, Ethiopia and elsewhere, along with potential changes in trade policies, will be the most influential factors to watch on fertiliser pricing in the coming months.

Thanks, GFP/FPR

The regional city of Orange in New South Wales is fast becoming a mecca for agricultural technology. A regional Australian city, famous for its food and wine, is now hoping to be the world's next Silicon Valley.

Orange, in central west New South Wales, is positioning itself as an innovation and agricultural technology (ag tech) hub, with a growing smorgasbord of entrepreneurs choosing to base themselves in the district. "The running joke at the moment is that Orange is the next Palo Alto or Silicon Valley," Hamish Munro, founder of digital start-up Pairtree, 

"I think that Orange can be a massive employer of a lot of new businesses that can be the next Canva or Atlassian, easily."

Mr Munro is a former farmer who launched Pairtree — a digital platform that aggregates data — in 2018. He says Orange's proximity to Sydney and the presence of the NSW Department of Primary Industries, Charles Sturt University and University of Sydney Rural Medical School make the district an attractive location for companies like his.

It's also close to a variety of agricultural commodities, such as horticulture and viticulture, that benefit from the cooler climate and rich, volcanic soils from the nearby dormant volcano, Mount Canobolas. The surrounding area is flatter and warmer, meaning it can sustain broadacre cropping as well as sheep and cattle production.

"Orange is surrounded by 360 degrees of ag, it's got universities, it's got government, it's got great healthcare and mining."

Tackling a global problem

One of the biggest jewels in the city's crown is bio-manufacturer Cauldron. The company's global ambition is to tackle food insecurity.

"The reason we exist is we're starting to understand that there's scarcity in supply chains," Cauldron CEO Michele Stansfield said.

"We're seeing this insecurity around the world in food supply chains, fuel supply chains, chemical supply chains.

"All the very large companies are looking at ways to shore up supply chains."

Cauldron uses fermentation to create microbes that form the foundation of products like laboratory-made milk.

"The molecules being created from this process are 'nature identical' to what has been created, be it by the cow or the chicken," Ms Stansfield said.

"We are absolutely looking to supplement or stretch supply chains, so the food ingredients we use would be used to create 4 billion pieces of cheese instead of 3 billion pieces of cheese.

Cauldron has secured funding with the United States' Department of Defence and Queensland government to build bio labs, but Ms Stansfield says there are no plans to leave Orange.

"Our research and development centre will always be here in Orange,

"That's where we screen the clients, we develop the technology, but this is a global problem … and we will locate our factories where it makes economic sense."

Why Orange is the place to be

Cauldron's start-up stablemates include Loam Bio, which grows fungi to help capture more carbon in soil, and Green Timber Technology, which has installed robots in part of Orange's old Electrolux fridge factory to build timber frames for homes.

Craig Murphy coordinates regular networking meetings for local entrepreneurs called Innovate Orange and says the city's smaller start-ups are capitalising on the foundations created by Cauldron and Loam Bio.

"We've all tried to kind of hack and build things in our garages and stuff like that, but it's also to bring commercial folks along as well," Mr Murphy told 7.30.

"I think if you're looking for a city or a location, maybe to bring your ag tech start-up, then you've got to look at what they're doing and go, 'well, that's where I probably should be going.'"

Despite the efforts of Innovate Orange, there are concerns that a more coordinated approach is needed to allow the city's innovation and ag-tech sector to realise its potential. It is something Ms Stansfield is conscious of, and she wants to get the next generation involved.

"I'd love for there to be some sort of formal structure that includes the university students a bit more, and that, I think, would set us apart," Ms Stansfield said.

"Silicon Valley created all of these amazing networks between companies and the universities that really set them apart, and I think that's ours to lose here in Orange at the moment."

Self-funded sector

The federal government wants Australia's agricultural industry to be worth $100 billion by 2030 and considers ag tech to be key in reaching this goal. Commonwealth grants are available, but they are highly competitive, and many start-ups are self-funded.

"We've got hundreds of thousands of dollars invested out of our personal savings, so you know the stakes are really high," startup owner Rony Stephen said. Mr Stephen was living in Sydney's Bondi when he holidayed at a farm stay at Mandurama in the NSW central west in 2021. His background in technology and fascination with farm life inspired him to create a range of gadgets.

He worked with farm-stay owner Grant Molloy to design sensors to monitor water levels on troughs and tanks, and GPS ear tags which allow farmers to track their livestock on an app. Mr Stephen eventually moved to Orange to establish his company, Sense My Farm.

"We're creating a product for farmers, and it really has to be developed by farmers, as opposed to engineers." Mr Stephen said.

Mr Stephen, though, has had to give himself a deadline of the "next year or so" for it to succeed.

"Right now, we're fully boot-strapped, so there's a limit to how much we can personally invest," he said.

Mr Munro hopes companies like Mr Stephen's and Mr Malloy's get additional support to ensure they survive.

"Australia is a net exporter of agricultural projects, mining, primary produce, and the real opportunity is really exporting tech," Mr Munro said.

"The real opportunity is supporting innovation."

Thanks, JMABC 

We Have Been to Your Town! We don’t just sit in an office; we are hands-on with our Farmers! 🙌

We’re thrilled to officially welcome Amanda Burchmann to the REALM Group Australia network as a long-term venture partner, bringing with her a powerful combination of industry knowledge, grassroots connections, and a bold vision for the future of agriculture.

Amanda is the founder of JAB Agri Solutions, a business born out of a genuine passion to bridge the gap between small-scale producers and the broader red meat and livestock industry. Based in Queensland, Amanda brings firsthand experience as a beef breeder and trader, as well as deep insight into the challenges faced by hobby farmers and small landholders navigating Australia’s complex compliance, traceability, and biosecurity landscape.

With decades of lived industry experience—growing up driving cattle and working in livestock transport—Amanda has cultivated a reputation for being practical, strategic, and deeply committed to the future of agriculture. She currently holds Councillor positions on both the AgForce SEQ Regional Council and the AgForce Young Producers Council, actively contributing to policy discussions and sector development.

Outside of her professional work, Amanda is a proud mum of three energetic boys and spends weekends as a sports trainer at their local league games. She thrives on connecting with others, learning from shared experiences, and contributing to the agricultural community. As Amanda says, “the agricultural industry is what makes me tick every day.”

Amanda is now focused on building a national education hub and digital compliance solution, backed by partnerships with MLA, ISC, and key industry stakeholders. Her mission is to simplify livestock compliance and empower producers with the tools and knowledge they need to succeed, no matter their scale.

As part of her long-term venture with REALM Group Australia, Amanda will be contributing a weekly segment to this newsletter, sharing practical tools, producer insights, compliance updates, and fresh perspectives on navigating the agricultural landscape. Her goal is to add real value to your business every week, whether you’re just starting or looking to sharpen your operations.

You can reach Amanda directly via:
📧 [email protected] 
📱 0408 847 536
🌐 https://www.jabagrisolutions.com.au/

Kind Regards,
Amanda Burchmann 

Founder | Advocate | Producer
JAB Agri Solutions Pty Ltd
ABN: 68 683 761 668
Phone: 0408847536
Address: 18 Roderick Drive, Cotswold Hills Qld 4350
Email: [email protected]
Website: https://www.jabagrisolutions.com.au/

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REALM Group Australia (RGA) - originally est. 1992. The most trusted online Ag Marketing System in Australia. Built by Farmers for Farmers! Education is the KEY. True Pioneers - We were the first, and we are still growing. Proud Supporters of the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) & Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC)