Country Journal, Week #63 - March 21, 2022

4000 COPIES DISTRIBUTED WEEKLY IN THE SOUTHERN DOWNS REGIONAL COUNCIL AREA + DAILY JOURNAL & STANTHORPE RECORD

CountryJournal Week commencing 21st March 2022

Stock route changes

Floods lead to stock drought

Spray drift technology

LITTLEPROUD QUESTIONS WHY WE ARE

PAYING FOR RABBITS Ben Boland

editor@thedailyjournal.ink

Why do we have a break in the rabbit fence at Cottonvale?

Why we even have a fence with rabbits both sides of the border? Perhaps more importantly why do we pay $318,556 per year to maintain the rabbit fence without a cent of Queensland government support? Why do ratepayers who are south of the fence pay for something which in no way benefits them? The answer starts with the history of rabbits in Australia.

The rabbit proof fence, which crosses the New

England Highway at on the road stop the rabbits? traffic led to this being Cottonvale, plays a critical Why do we have a rabbit replaced with a grid. When role in stopping Queensland proof fence when there are the new highway was put being overrun by rabbits. The rabbits on both sides?" through no grid was included significance of the fence is The Darling Downs- as it was deemed to be a safeperhaps best highlighted Moreton Rabbit Board ty issue. So main roads added locally by the colossal damage (DDMRB) explained that his- 250m 'wing across the Tap Rock country torically there was a gate at Continued inside back... north of Stanthorpe in the Cottonvale, but increased 1950s. Where the total destruction of plant life took decades to recover Servicing Warwick, Stanthorpe and Beyond from, indeed some locals Made from Bluescope Australian Steel FULL SERVICE - SLAB, ERECTION & COUNCIL believe it has never fully recovered.

•Acreage Sheds Councillor Jo McNally •Farm Sheds recently voiced two ques(07) 46 619 835 tions many have thought •Garages E warwick@rfsteelbuildings.com.au as they crossed the fence QBCC: 1197750 l NSW: 237076C at Cottonvale.

E warwick@rfsteelbuildings.com.au "How does a white line

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

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This program is part of the Regional Workforce Transition Support Program (WTSP) and is FULLY FUNDED for eligible participants. The Manufacturing Pathways is a pre-apprenticeship course, and participants will: · Receive career advice and mentoring · Be provided with access to local employers by undertaking work placement (TAFE will organise their work experience/placement) · Gain an entry level qualification and increase their prospects of gaining a manufacturing apprenticeship · Develop workplace interaction skills Starting date for the Warwick Campus is 2 May 2022 (duration 10 weeks).

Please direct all requests for further information or enrolment enquiries to the WTSP team at: WTSP.Pathways@ tafeqld.edu.au.

not a potato, but was actually a gourd.

Dug’s owner in New Zealand admitted to being ‘disappointed’ that his record-breaking dreams have been crushed but says it has not deterred him from ‘growing the biggest potato in the world’.

The wet hits cattle prices

THE cattle market has continued to track sideways through

SPECIALS

Country briefs the flooding disasters and Ukraine war, in line with what is characteristic for March and on par with what has been forecast for this year.

The benchmark Eastern Young Cattle Indicator has not ventured much out of a 20 cents a kilogram carcase weight range with a top of 1130c since the end of January. Its gentle zig zagging

has simply reflected the normal ebbs and flows of the market.

Drops in numbers on offer as producers in Queensland and northern NSW struggled to get stock to market during floods was met with equal drops in demand as processors closed to clean up water damage, resulting in little price impact.

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It’s a bloody gourd!

What some thought to be the world’s biggest potato has been ruled as being a gourd following a DNA test in Scotland. The oversized fruit, that was named Dug, was found in August in a garden in Hamilton, New Zealand. It weighed in at 7.9 kg.

Colin and Donna CraigBrown, who made the discovery when cleaning their vegetable garden, sent in a DNA sample to the Guinness World Records to see if their “potato” was the world’s heaviest.

However, an email from Guinness World Records stated that the Science & Advice for Scottish Agriculture/SASA found the DNA sample taken showed the specimen was

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

News wrap Elizabeth Voneiff editor@thedailyjournal.ink

Your political representatives met last week in Stanthorpe to start cogitating over upcoming budget decisions. So far, and these are early days, it is a mixed bag of hemoraging money to pay for waste and landfill and a much improved water situation.

The increased reliance on grant funding, which can be extremely competitive and fraught, is an issue for Council. Ratepayer funds do not cover the massive costs associated with roads, waste and sewerage. The pile of funds available for drought, flood, bushfire and COVID emergencies will end soon which is a worry for Council's bottom line.

In other news planning has

Skip the tobacco crop A man was sentenced last week with 9 months imprisonment (to be served by way of Intensive Correction Order in the community), 100 hours community service and a $5,500 fine at the Parramatta Local Court for possessing more than 600kg of illicit tobacco with an estimated excise foregone value of more than $250,000.

In June 2020, search warrants were executed by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and Queensland Police Service (QPS) at a remote property in Gungaloon, west of Maryborough.

At the property, officers located and seized 428kg worth of tobacco plants. They also found an additional 195kg of tobacco leaf, much of which was drying on steel racks.

During the search warrant, Mr George Samrani identified himself as the boss and said

The Daily Journal Australia's Smallest Daily Newspaper

c o m menced for the 2022 aerial baiting program which will take place in M a y .

Ground baiting will occur in April and anyone interested in the program should contact Council.

The dismal roll call of Magistrate Court's slate of violent crimes played out this week with dozens of mentions and committals on alleged rapes, sexual assaults, indecent treatment of children, domestic violence, supplying dangerous drugs, breach of bail and traffic offenses. there were 10 people working at the property and he was their ‘foreman’. He also said the tobacco plants growing in the field were just ‘rubbish’ and the racks of tobacco leaf were for smoking.

Mr Samrani attempted to load tobacco leaf into the boot of his vehicle and continued to do so after officers told him to stop. He subsequently pleaded guilty on 21 January 2021 to two offences of possessing tobacco.

Ac t i ng As s i stant Commissioner Megan Croaker welcomed this result.

“There are no excuses, it has been illegal to grow tobacco in Australia for more than a decade,” Ms Croaker said.

“These are not hobby farms, but sophisticated operations run by criminals knowingly avoiding excise and depriving the community of taxes that are required to fund essential community services such as health and education. They also put honest businesses out of business by undercutting the market with their dodgy products.”

A Pratten man last week turned himself in to Warwick police and was charged with the alleged murder of a Crows Nest w o m e n .

K r i s h n a Chopra was the man's motherin-law and the evidence so far indicates that he allegedly killed her using a heavy object. The 33-yearold remains in custody.

We caught up with Member for the Southern Downs, James Lister, in parliament this week where he bailed up the Premier on the question of the Emu Swamp Dam

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StanthorpeRecord BORDER COUNTRY EXPRESS

project. He is pushing for the project to get out of the "pause" stage where it currently sits and into the shovel-ready stage complete with State and Federal funding.

While Mr Lister is currently in opposition, he is working to build alliances both within and beyond his party to prepare for the inevitable day when Queensland will have a change of power.

The iconic Freestone Railway Store, which is actually a house, has been sold to a Texas family who need to be closer to schooling. The building was restored recently and sold for about $500,000.

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

State cutting red tape on stock routes Staff Reports editor@thedailyjournal.ink

The State government wants the state's 72,000 kilometres of stock routes to remain viable and are taking steps to ensure so.

The proposed legislative changes would cut red tape for the $18.5 billion agriculture sector.

"The stock routes network is a key piece of infrastructure for producers who use it for agistment in times of drought, and for drovers moving and feeding up to 330,000 head of stock each year," Resources Minister Scott Stewart said.

The stock route traverses the entire state from the far north, west to the border with the Northern Territory and south to places like Goondiwindi.

"It's local councils who know the local maintenance priorities.

"The changes before Parliament will reduce councils' administrative costs and ensure every cent of users' fees is reinvested in managing the network.

The changes are contained in the Lands and Other Legislation Amendment Bill introduced into Parliament

today and flow from consultation last year on a discussion paper.

The Bill proposes: -all fees going directly to councils. Currently, State Government and councils take half each -an option for councils to also charge an application fee, which they can also waive for hardship, for example, during drought -less red tape for councils around stock routes planning.

Mr Stewart said AgForce and the Local Government Association of Queensland had worked in partnership with Queensland Government agencies to progress the reform of stock routes and their management.

"The changes before the Parliament come after major consultation and collaboration was done with stakeholders, and will underpin a sustainable, functional route for travelling stock for decades to come," he said.

The Bill to amend the legislation has been referred to the Transport and Resources Committee for consideration.

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

Krista’s patch....

Krista Bjorn

editor@thedailyjournal.ink

If there's a bright side to ferocious winds knocking down trees and branches around the farm, it's the new abundance of firewood to be had. And boy, is there ever a lot of it.

Tangled piles dot the farm now, mounds made with branches and trunks from poplar, paulownia, grevillea, golden rain, and gum trees, and even some we haven't been able to identify, perhaps gifts hurled by the wind from a neighbouring farm.

Yes, it's hard work to drag everything into piles, strip off the leaves the goats haven't eaten, and cut or break each chunk into manageable

pieces that can be stacked and dried for next year, but it's worth it.

Why, you may ask?

W e l l , because lots of firewood means a lot of campfires.

I love campfire season, that blissful moment when it's too cold for mozzies, the flies have skedaddled, and we can sit in companionable silence with a glass of homemade wine while we watch the flames dance.

There's something quite magical about sitting by the fire, watching the sun sink down below the tree line and spotting the first stars appearing overhead. Somehow, as the fire crackles and the smoke drifts lazily, all the

stress of the day melts away and the noise and mayhem of the world dissolves into peace.

Even our dinner tastes better when cooked over the fire.

Sure, it may be a bit burnt in some places and completely raw in others, but somehow the flames transform it into smoky goodness every time.

So, as I trudge across the farm to grab another armload of branches for the woodpile, leaves in my hair, scratches on my face, I smile and dream of cosy nights by the fire noshing on burnt snags and waving smoke out of my eyes.

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

Commodities report: Elizabeth Voneiff

editor@thedailyjournal.ink

Commodity prices were a mixed bag this week with some large gains in grains, thanks to the war in Ukraine, and drops in cotton and pulses.

The big winner this week is cattle prices which fell in early March due to floods but recovered and were up 33.2 percent according to government reports. Typical prices are 464c/kg (lwt) according to cow indicators.

However, lamb meat was down 2 percent to 799c/kg and cattle as a whole only rose by 0.9 percent to 1124c/kg (EYCI).

The USDA has cut its

forecast of wheat exports for Ukraine and Russia as initial impacts of the conflict but has warned of higher uncertainty. Wheat prices rose 11.3 percent to $395/t. Barley prices have also risen with global supply concerns and malt barley was $257/t delivered Melbourne and $299/t (feed) according to Grain Central.

Sorghum has been impacted

by recent rain but late plant- 2.3 percent to $930/t. ed crops will benefit.

Chickpeas were down 2 perSorghum was up 3.1 percent cent to $488/t thanks to a to $335/t. record large crop in Australia Australian canola basis is this year with over 1 million improving as local prices are tonnes produced. climbing against Canadian Sorghum data sourced from and European oilseed futures, awe.gov.au with higher FOR SALE export interest, according to Millet Straw Profar mer.

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

Bowser bankruptcy Elizabeth Voneiff editor@thedailyjournal.ink

Fuel prices are fueling a crisis for farmers on the Southern Downs and beyond, compounding the spiking fertiliser, shipping, chemical costs.

A delegation from Queensland Farmers' Federation (QFF) met with Federal Minister for Agriculture David Littleproud MP last week to discuss the sustainability of the agriculture sector in the face of spiraling input costs and concerns regarding input supply security.

Diesel prices are spiking to new levels creating cost headaches. The meeting with Mr Littleproud initiated discussions on how industry and government can work closely together to find solutions.

QFF chief executive officer, Jo Sheppard understands farmers cannot continue to bear the brunt of spiralling costs.

"Fuel, fertiliser, chemicals and many other inputs are sourced from overseas. Over the last 2 years we have seen the costs of these increase by,

in some cases, 150%. Most consumers have not yet seen the impact of this as farmers have absorbed many of these price increases, however this is not sustainable."

"This latest increase in fuel prices will have an impact on every aspect of production and is compounding the problem of already rising input costs. Farmers are concerned with the price hikes but also concerned with the future security of supply of many key farm inputs."

"If you accept that 'Australia runs on trucks', it's easy to see how these fuel spikes are going to play out. Every delivery of fertiliser, seed, stock etc will increase. On farm, the costs of operating machinery increases. And, getting produce to retailers

and consumer increases too."

QFF wants the Federal government to work with industry to find security of supply of fuel and other volatile inputs.

"There are many variables in farming, but the sector has been innovating for many years to build its capacity to manage risk. A reliable, cost-effective supply chain is critical to the future of agriculture." she said.

"We need the federal government to work closely with industry to help shore up the supply of fuel and other key inputs, so that farmers have a secure and stable environment to operate in, costs can be contained, and we can continue to do what our farming sector does best in producing high quality, food, fibre and foliage."

Firm restocker interest Ross Ellis McDougall and Sons

The sales saw an increase of stock numbers at both the main sales this week. The cattle market was firm across the board with the re-emergence of the major exporters. The back to the paddock and light trade types are still the main drivers. The sheep and lamb market saw an increase of numbers with some good runs of both mutton and lamb types. The market eased for the export weights and was kept to a par with the firm restocker interest.

Vealer steers averaged 727.7c/kg topping at 894.2c/kg or $1688.68 to $2239.28. Vealer heifers averaged 605.5c/kg topping at 695.2c/ kg or $1557.08 to $2050.21 Feeder steers averaged 568.7c/kg topping at 700.2c/kg or $2244.91 to $2945.10 rs av. Feeder heifers averaged 547c/kg topping at 588.2c/kg or $1943.99 to $2141.37. Yearling steers averaged 653c/kg topping at 738.2c/kg or $1917.16 to $2691.90. Yearling heifers aver-

aged 569.3c/kg topping at 616.2c/kg or $1901.43 to $2760.00. Steers averaged 487.8c/ kg topping at 606.2c/kg or $2680.56 to $3220. Heifers averaged 448.5c/kg topping at 570.2c/kg or $2061.27 to $2541.56.

Manufacturing steers averaged 464.2c/kg to return $2088.90 per head. Cows averaged 352.3c/kg topping at 389.2c/kg or $2163.12 to $3093.04. Bulls averaged 456.7ckg topping at 1018.2c/kg or $2243.03 to $3665.52.

Sheep and lambs were a mixture of both light trade and feed on lambs making up the majority as well as a few runs of trade and export types. The market was fully firm for processing stock but eased in the lighter end and the export mutton.

Lambs topped at $212 to average $159.40 a drop of $10/head. Hoggets topped at $232 to average $168.10 a gain of $50/ head. Ewes topped at

$158 to average $119.17 on par with last week.

Wethers topped at $170 to average $121.39 a drop of $36/head, Lamb rams topped at $185 to average $123.30 a drop of $17/head.

The total sale yarding of 2326 averaged $146.57/ head which was a drop of $3/head Sows sold from $170 to $400, Stores $40 to $142, Light Pork $159 to $181, Gilts $180 to $260, Chicks sold to $17.50, Ducklings to $12.50, Roosters to $12.50, Pullets to $17.50.

03MH024Tue_CJ_Fon

COUNTRYJOURNAL

9

Goanna Ag in $5 million deal Staff Reports

editor@thedailyjournal.ink

A Goondwindi firm has entered a partnership with the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) and the Cotton Research and Development Corporation (CDRC) to develop a spray drift hazardous weather warning system that will provide real time weather data and alerts to growers.

The investment is worth $5.5 million.

Goanna Ag will establish, operate and maintain a network of 100 Profiling Automatic Weather Stations (PAWS) across the grain and cotton regions of NSW, southern and central QLD. The PAWS have remote sensing capability and new proprietary software to provide growers and spray contractors real-time weather data every 10 minutes.

Being able to accurately identify the presence of hazardous temperature inversions will reduce the spray drift risk for growers and spray contractors. Currently regulations do not permit spraying agricultural chemicals when hazardous surface temperature inversions are present.

The network will provide a 24-hour forecast, broken into two hourly segments, of hazardous temperature inversions periods, significantly help growers and spray contractors to plan the logistics of spray operations.

Hazardous surface temperature inversions occur when air temperature increases with height from the ground surface, leaving a layer of cool air trapped below warm air. In this situation droplets can remain suspended in the inversion layer in concentrated form and be carried significant distances from the target area.

The PAWS warning system builds on breakthrough research, conducted and published by Drs Graeme Tepper and Warwick Grace with support from GRDC and CRDC, and will be operational in time for the 2022-23 summer cropping season.

GRDC Chair John Woods said the warning system would improve on-farm decision making by accurately identifying and forecasting hazardous spray conditions.

"Until recently, there has been no reliable and accurate method to determine

when inversion conditions are hazardous for agricultural spraying using real time data," Mr Woods said.

"These hazardous inversion conditions exist most nights of the year for undefined

periods, so we need to have the ability to know exactly when they are occurring and stop spraying. The warning system will provide this critical information to help inform on-farm decision making..

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

Last chance for peach jam Krista Bjorn editor@thedailyjournal.ink

S

adly, peach season is nearly over. When the world feels full of catastrophes and sadness, I embrace familiar tasks to provide comfort and continuity.

This week I made jars of white peach jam for my newspaper co-workers hoping that a bit of homemade goodness would bring a smile in the midst of floods, fuel price hikes, and food shortages.

I put on an audiobook, brewed a cup of coffee, then got into a gentle rhythm of peeling, pitting, and crushing white peaches.

I felt stress melt away as I worked, stirring the fragrant fruit into a gloriously bubbling mass that filled the house with the scent of peaches and cinnamon.

Apart from freshly baked bread, I don't know of a more comforting smell.

Within a couple of hours the jam was cool enough to eat and thankfully, it tasted as good as it smelled.

It goes well on hot-buttered toast, crumpets, and English muffins, or can be stirred into vanilla yoghurt for a quick dessert. It's also lovely added to a hot cup of

black tea in lieu of sugar. I learned to have my tea that way when I lived in Russia many moons ago, and I treasure it still.

White Peach Jam Ingredients 8 medium-size ripe white p e a c h e s (should measure out to 4 cups crushed) 1/2 envelope fruit pectin 2 Tbsp lime juice 5 cups white sugar 1 tsp ground cinnamon Directions: Remove stems, skins, and pits from peaches then crush and measure four cups into a heavy-bottomed large saucepan.

Add lime juice and pectin and stir well.

Place on high heat and, stirring constantly, bring to a full boil.

Add the sugar and cinnamon and return to a full boil, stirring constantly.

Boil hard for 3-4 minutes.

Remove pot from heat and place on cutting board.

Skim foam off the top.

(NOTE: Don't throw out the foam. Scoop it into a bowl to cool slightly, then eat warm or cold on toast.)

Pour hot jam immediately into sterile canning jars, filling them to 1 cm from the top. Seal carefully and place into a pot of boiling water.

Boil for five minutes then remove to a cutting board to cool completely.

Enjoy with toast or scones or stir into a cup of hot tea.

Editor's note: A a Southern

woman, I know all about peach jam and Krista's is absolutely delicious. In fact, I hid the last two tablespoons away in the back of the fridge so no one else will find it.

Photo shows jars of white peach jam cooling on the counter.

Editor’s note: I have been lucky enough to enjoy Krista’s peach jam and I can promise you that it is amazing.

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COUNTRYJOURNAL GENERAL KNOWLEDGE CROSSWORD

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6

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9

is represented by the Roman numeral IV (4) 2 What are dirigibles also known as (6) 3 To pirouette, is to do what (4) 4 Name a renowned telephone greeting (5)

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In 1815, Indonesian volcano Mt Tambora exploded — the sonic boom travelled over 4000km! The spewed ash affected the world’s climate and by 1816 the northern hemisphere had ‘The Year Without a Summer’. This gloomy period produced Frankenstein and the first bicycle.

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S H A D E S

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A R A L D I I A N C E T G G R E M E N R O O N E O U S N E E S T O S I I I G A N T N K

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B S H L L A P S E I I L I M I N A L P F O T S O F F A B I G D A V E R N A S B N K E R Y E L I T A R T S E

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PAYING FOR RABBITS continued from front page... fences' on the Southern side of the fence. The fence was also raised in height for strategic stretches to stop not only rabbits but also wild dogs crossing into 'clean' Queensland. Readers may also be interested to know that while the high sections of fence impede kangaroos and wallabies, aboral natives such as koalas, possums and goannas scale the manmade divide.

Regarding the reality of rabbits on the 'clean' side of the fence, DDMRB chair Cr Janice Holstein explains while there are some rabbits north of the fence the population numbers are lower and genetic testing has shown the two populations do not significantly interbreed.

The DDMRB actively work to suppress the northern population. Though the recent discovery of a warren in Toowoomba was an unwelcome surprise, many of the sighting of rabbits north of the border are in fact hares, a related introduced species but one which is not a major threat to either conservation of agriculture. However, the DDMRB strongly encourage any sightings of rabbits north of the fence to be reported to www.ddmrb.org.au.

Southern Downs Regional Council ratepayers may be interested to know the DDMRB is not funded by either the State or Federal government. Indeed, this council is one of only eight Queensland which fund the rabbit fence at a cost of $318,556. The funding is generous particularly as the 15 to 30 percent of ratepayers are south of the fence.

The DDMRB primarily uses this income to deploy its staff of 14 to patrol and repair the fence.

The Hon David Littleproud, Minister for Agriculture, told the Country Journal "Rabbits are an established pest that have always been a state government responsibility. The Queensland government should support Southern Downs Regional Council ratepayers and help them maintain this important piece of infrastructure."

Meanwhile, Council is grappling with the funding issue.

"The review of the Darling DownsMoreton Rabbit Board and the rabbit fence is considering the current funding arrangements and exploring alternate models. Council will be participating in the review process and will consider its

COUNTRYJOURNAL

“How does a

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position regard- white line on the ing contributions to the Land road stop the Protection Fund rabbits?” once the findings and recommendations of the review are known," a spokesperson said.

As for the large number of residents now protected by the fence, Council said it is not in their power to change the ernment should support Southern arrangement.

"This is not a decision of Council. As Downs Regional Council ratepayers and mentioned previously, Council's contri- help them maintain this important piece butions to the Land Protection Fund are of infrastructure."

Until then, residents of the Southern set by the criteria in the Biosecurity Act Downs are shouldering the expense of 2014." keeping Queensland rabbit free.

All residents and land managers in Queensland are responsible to identify and take 'reasonable action' to control all invasive species, which includes rabbits under the Queensland Biosecurity Act 2014. It was this act which caused significant angst under the previous council.

The Southern Downs Regional Council notes the following three resources are available: The Invasive Pest Strategic Plan is available on Council's website and sets out a landholder's responsibilities in more detail. Council's website also has information and links to facts sheets on a wide variety of C R O C O D I L E S J U I C Y M weeds and feral animals known to H A R W E T F M A M M A L S S C impact the region.

A A C T I V E H F A E L G D I L Council also has I D I E S A E R S T E R R G U S pest management officers available to R B U B I X D T U I I I G F E M meet with landY L E L C W D E C N B S N E F D holders on their A A G O T A E A K G W I T C H Y property to provide advice and assist to S R G O S G T A M T A E R T U H help them meet H V S D U S A T T P R N D R R A their obligations A A G O S S O I L H M P E S T S under the act.

"Rabbits are an R E G O S H O C K E E O N F L I established pest P O L L I N A T E C A R R Y E S that have always been a state govMarch Flies Find the Pair: ernment responsiWordfind: Ans: E & G bility", said Mr Hidden Phrase: “March flies are Littleproud. " The six times faster than dragonQueensland govflies.”

Pencilhead solutions

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

Wool market defies logic Bruce McLeish Elders The Australian wool market, at least in the minds of some operators, continues to defy logic and remain strong.

Although there are plenty of reasons that the wool market is buoyant and performing well, it is pleasantly surprising to some that is able to remain so. Negative factors are growing, but to date they have been unable to turn the tide. We have seen large volumes of supply, with the past four weeks all having initial rosters above the psychological 50,000 barrier, which in the past has been enough to create a dip in prices. Wet conditions and excess feed have certainly led to an increase in burr, cot and colour throughout the clip, and the percentage of these wools has increased in 2022, yet the market continues to thrive and absorb many of these lower style wools without too much concern.

Wet weather has also conspired to delay shearing enough to produce a noticeable increase in staple length which is a concern for top makers around the world, but as yet, these overlong wools are being purchased and processed without excessive discounts. The geopolitical risk needle has entered the red

zone, but to a large degree the wool market has been able to ignore it, or at least go about normal business whilst just keeping one eye on proceedings in Ukraine. Currency volatility, normally the bane of the exporting fraternity has been an issue to contend with, but to date, has not had a measurable effect on wool prices in the Australian market. Throw in a bit of shipping turmoil and the calm, measured performance of the Australian wool market is quite a feat.

At the end of the selling week in Australia the wool market had managed to gain 6 cents as measured by the AWEX EMI, and 8 cents in US currency. European buyers faced a much more significant jump in prices with a rise of 21 Euro cents, as the single region's currency hit 20-month lows against the USD. The Aussie Dollar initially climbed above the .74 mark, before thankfully easing on the eve of wool sales back below .73 again, but it certainly remains volatile.

The whole gamut of Australian wools closed the week in positive territory with everything moving more or less upwards by the same percentage. So, in nominal terms the superfine merino categories closed up by 20 cents,

much closer to the action than we are in Australia.

Initially it seemed like it would overwhelm the European textile scene, and it may still have a negative effect, however business has picked up again after the early temporary decline.

Wooltop sales to spinners have been brisk and are keeping top makers and exporters busy. The levels of consumer confidence down the track, will still be tested, particularly after they have paid their energy bills. Whilst Australian consumers are increasingly vocal about the rising petrol prices, spare a thought for European consumers who are paying north of $3.50 AUD/ litre for their fuel. Add to that the significant heating bills which most households must pay, and which will now be up to 100% higher than last year. Exactly how much these costs eat into discretionary incomes when September/October roll around and retailers try to sell the products currently in production is a risk worrying the textile community across Europe. At present they continue to proceed with their established plans, but at some point, the axe may fall.

“...the ongoing war in Ukraine...initially seemed like it would overwhelm the European textile scene... however business has picked up again...” although the Melbourne movements were more subdued. Medium merino types were generally 15 cents dearer, as were skirtings.

Crossbred wools gained 5 cents, and carding wools generally added 10 cents.

Again, those wools with sustainable certification were keenly sought after across the range of types, with even crossbred wools or stains carrying a certificate bringing a large premium. South Africa held a relatively large volume sale, with slightly more than 13,000 bales being offered.

Of these just over 50% of their merino wool was certified by one sustainable scheme or another.

Comparatively, the Australian catalogues contained a combined 600 odd bales of these wools.

The ongoing war in Ukraine continues to dominate the headlines, and the minds of many, and particularly in Europe who are so

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