8 minute read
Passion for innovation – reaps the rewards
BY ROBYN DEVINE
In the heart of Maryborough’s sugarcane growing country, Brad and Tara Cronau of B & T Farming, are redefining what it means to be modern sugarcane growers.
With a deep respect for tradition and a relentless drive for efficiency, Brad has transformed his family’s farm into a model of process-driven innovation. His journey is a testament to the resilience and ingenuity required to thrive in the ever-evolving agricultural landscape.
Farming is in Brad’s blood. As a fourth-generation farmer, he carries forward the lessons and values passed down, but he is not one to be bound by convention. Starting in 2012 with little more than a passion for farming and an engineering background, Brad and his wife Tara took on the challenge of leasing cane farms, gradually expanding their operation through a combination of strategic investments and sheer determination.
“We started with leasing ground, hiring machines, and buying old equipment to refurbish,” Brad said.
“The first machine I bought was a cane planter that required borrowing money. We just made do with what we had and kept pushing forward.”
Through hard work and perseverance, they have since acquired a couple of farms, investing in modern equipment and improving farming techniques to maximise efficiency and productivity. This steady growth has allowed them to establish a sustainable farming operation that not only preserves the legacy of past generations but sets the foundation for the future.
One of Brad’s defining strengths is his ability to rethink traditional farming systems for better efficiency and productivity.
Early on, he transitioned from the standard 1.65 metre single-row planting system to a more efficient 2.4 metre dual-row system, a move that has dramatically improved his operation’s productivity.
The change wasn’t easy. I said to myself if I am going to start out building equipment from scratch, I’ll go to a system that I can see myself using in the long term
“We had multiple systems running at once before we could fully transition on the farm that I was leasing from Wide Bay Seedlings, it had 1.6 to 1.8 metre rows on it. And I transitioned to 2 metres and then I leased another farm off Maryborough Sugar, and it was on 1.65 metres. I had all three systems running at once.
“About three years after I started doing the 2 metre dual rows, I had this brainwave and wanted to go to 2.4 metres. It suited me on the hillsides we have here, because 2 metres was a little bit close in the wheel track width for my tractors to get up and that's where we’ve been moving to for the past six years.
“This is the first year we have been farming on the one system, and it’s been a big effort to phase all the other systems out but now everything we do is in multiples of three, covering 7.2 metres with each pass. That kind of efficiency makes a huge difference when you’re farming 650 hectares.”
Beyond increasing efficiency in sugarcane farming, Brad has also integrated other crops such as soybeans and ginger into his rotation, ensuring sustainability and soil health.
The addition of ginger posed initial challenges, as traditional harvesting methods were highly labour-intensive. However, Brad’s engineering mindset led him to develop mechanised solutions, modifying existing machinery to streamline the planting and harvesting process.
“In the beginning, we were cutting and digging ginger by hand. It was exhausting and slow,” Brad recalled.
“We worked on mechanising the entire process, from digging to washing, making it far more efficient and scalable.”
Brad has also explored innovative fertilisation methods to improve soil health. By trialling carbon-based soil treatments and incorporating organic compost, he has enhanced the long-term viability of his crops while reducing his dependence on synthetic fertilisers.
“Farming this system has a lot to do with soil health, a lot of our soils here are what we call grey scrub soil, and it compacts very easily and because we've got designated wheel tracks, we don't over work our wheel tracks.
As we have worked our beds, I have noticed that every year it just seems to be getting a little bit better. If we chop cane out, we just run through and hoe it and we can plant soybeans into it, as we have such a wide bed that is untouched by wheels.
“To me that’s the biggest asset. I believe that investing in soil health today will pay dividends for years to come.”
Like many farmers, Brad and Tara have faced their share of obstacles, from the financial constraints in the early days to adapting to new industry challenges, such as changing chemical regulations and the closure of the Maryborough mill.
However, Brad’s pragmatic approach and willingness to embrace change have kept them ahead of the curve.
The key is to focus on what you can control and make it work
“When we started growing ginger, it was all manual. Now we’ve mechanised the entire process. We didn’t wait for a perfect opportunity, we created it.”
Another major challenge has been the transition to hauling cane up the road to the Isis Central Mill, after the Maryborough Mill’s closure, which initially presented logistical hurdles.
Key industry stakeholders, including CANEGROWERS, are working with growers, contractors and the mill, to ensure a smoother transportation and improved coordination, ultimately securing a reliable path forward.
“We need the mill, and they need us. It’s a matter of working together and refining the system,” Brad said pragmatically.
“Sure, there were teething problems, but we’ve come a long way, and it’s a positive step for the future.”
Another challenge over the years has been navigating environmental regulations, particularly concerning the use of chemicals and soil management practices. Rather than seeing these as setbacks, Brad has embraced innovative ways to enhance sustainability.
“We’re always looking for ways to improve, whether that’s through better irrigation methods, more efficient harvesting, or testing new crops that could complement our existing rotation,” Brad said.
“We are gradually evolving as we go, doing everything ourselves is important to me, we harvest and plant our own cane, and do the same for our soybeans, manage our transport and cart our ginger away too, we do the lot. We have been hard at it for the past 11 or so years and we are starting to see the rewards now.
“But the size of your entity helps too, we grew 35,000 tonne last year. We have a lot of our own machinery now too, but it hasn’t been easy getting to here. It wasn’t for the faint-hearted.
Brad said growing soybeans, ginger and sugarcane was a very good rotation.
“With ginger disease is one of its biggest threats, so if you had a small farm growing ginger on ginger, you could have a problem. We rotate that with our sugarcane, once the cane gets chopped out. We'll put soybeans in it for 12 months and then it goes into ginger and when that’s finished it goes back to cane for six years. That’s our cycle.
“The biggest issue is that the workload all happens from June through till November as ginger has the same harvest period as sugarcane.”
Brad believes in embracing opportunities that are beneficial to your business as they arise.
“You have to jump on them, nothing ever happens at the right time. My attitude is I will make this work. I am pretty determined, and we work out ways to work with what we have, to get to where we want to be.
“I like doing things properly and that takes time, we modify our equipment to suit, we work out processes and systems that will work and get them in place as we go along.
Looking ahead, Brad plans to further expand his farming operation, improve the mechanisation, and continue diversifying crops to mitigate risks. He sees great potential in biofuels and alternative markets for sugarcane, which could provide long-term stability for growers.
Brad and Tara are optimistic about the future of their family's entity, but it has taken hardwork and ingenuity to get to where they are today
“There’s so much opportunity in biofuels and value-added products,” Brad said.
“We need to think beyond raw sugar and explore new ways to sustain our industry.
“Farming isn’t just about individual success. It’s about strengthening the entire industry so we can all thrive together.”
Collaboration and innovation will be key to ensuring the industry’s longevity
Technology is increasingly playing a pivotal role in modern farming and Brad has been exploring precision agriculture techniques such as GPS-guided machinery, remote sensors and innovative irrigation systems for several years. These innovations help B & T Farming to optimise resource use, minimise waste, and enhance overall productivity.
“Technology is a game-changer in agriculture,” he says. “We need to embrace it and use it to make smarter, more informed decisions. There’s always room for improvement.
“If we can make farming more sustainable while maintaining profitability, that’s the ultimate goal.”
With his sights set on innovation, efficiency and sustainability, Brad’s farming journey is far from over. As he continues to push boundaries, he remains steadfast in his mission: to build a resilient, thriving farming enterprise that will last for generations to come.
