Country Journal, Week #75 - June 13, 2022

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

CountryJournal Week commencing 13th June 2022

Tackling rural crime

A winter standard

A Hendra vaccine

Vedelago recognised Krista Bjorn editor@thedailyjournal.ink

Thanks to his resilience and unique management style, Fonlea Orchards and Fast Fruit Sales operations manager Trent Vedelago has won Grower of the Year 2022 from Apple and Pear Australia (APAL).

"Trent has shown great resilience, particularly during the drought, when he was trucking in a megalitre of water a day to keep the farm going," APAL said of the local ag hero. "He also carried out an aggressive pruning program and removed some less-profitable blocks.

This unorthodox management and unprecedented expenditure were to ensure the longterm sustainability of the business."

foundation member of the Granite Belt Growers Association and a strong participant in Focus Orchards which is part of APAL's Future Orchards program."

The APAL Awards for Excellence 2022 celebrate the exceptional contribution made by industry leaders, growers, marketers, exporters and researchers. The winners were chosen by the APAL Board from recommendations pro-

Mr Vedelago is the primary manager for all orchard operations, manages all storage facilities and has strategic input to the business's packing operations.

"In recent years he has moved to producing more high-quality apples, with a focus on innovation and investment," APAL said.

"He is an active contributor to the industry, hosting (07) 46 619 835 orchard walks and technolE warwick@rfsteelbuildings.com.au ogy transfer opportunities for other growers, being a

vided by the Nominations Committee. The Nominations Committee is comprised of state association and industry representatives from eight growing regions, including Councillor Stephen Tancred from Stanthorpe.

Mr Vedalago's award was presented at the APAL Forum in Melbourne on 30 May in front of more than 100 of his peers.

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

Lettuce price agony Have you given up on green salads? They're sinfully expensive with lettuce prices at all-time highs, even here in the Southern Downs.

All over Australia lettuce prices are skyrocketing. Twitter users are posting photos of iceberg lettuces for $10 and $11.99, well above the more usual $2.80. But it is not just lettuce. The peak body for Australian vegetable producers, AUSVEG, says between 2006 and 2016 costs - and most likely prices

SPECIALS

- more than doubled.

As the Country Journal has reported, some of what's happening now is due to transport.

Vegetables are moved by truck and are sensitive to diesel prices, pushed high by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. A US Department of Agriculture study found a doubling in the diesel price would lead to a short-term increase in wholesale prices of 20% to 28%.

This week, the Warwick Woolworths were out of stock with iceberg lettuce according to their online shopping site. A small 200gram bag of shredded iceberg lettuce was selling for $2, or $10 per

kilo. Solanato tomatoes were priced at $24.50 a kilo and romas priced at 98cents each. A quick walk to Coles found iceberg for a more reasonable $5.50 each.

Tomatoes of different varieties ranged from $12.90 to $24.50 a kilo.

Due to the devastating flooding in Queensland and NSW, supply in fresh produce has been sporadic, especially for leafy greens. As a result, many major supermarkets have been stripped bare in their fresh produce aisles. Truss, gourmet, cherry and solanato tomatoes, zucchini, beans and broccolini are also among the items in

short supply.

In May, Woolworths reported in its third quarter report that vegetable prices were in inflation while fruit remained in slim rates of deflation for the first three months of the year; however, the overall range-wide average price had inflation of 2.7 per cent.

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Vegetable grower survey As consumers face food shortages and soaring produce prices, several food agencies are working together to boost vegetable consumption across the country, starting with a survey of vegetable growers. “[We] are undertaking a research project amongst Australian vegetable growers to better understand the industry perceptions and views towards increasing consumption of vegetables, as a national priority as we recover from the COVID-19 pandemic,” The Fruit and Vegetable Consortium (FVC), Nutrition Australia and AUSVEG said.

Vegetable growers in the Southern Downs and Granite Belt are encouraged to share their views through a short online survey.

“Your views are important as suppliers and growers of fresh produce,” they said.

The survey includes questions around issues such as key factors in higher retail costs in fresh vegetables, expectations around the future costs of vegetable production, ways the industry can improve the way people think about the affordability and value for money of vegetables, and usage of surplus product.

The survey can be found at www.insightled.questionpro. com/a/ TakeSurvey?tt=y74Ugzr9ZeI%3D

COUNTRYJOURNAL

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Horticulture resilience Krista Bjorn editor@thedailyjournal.ink

T

he horticulture industry in Queensland now has a government-supported plan for long term resilience.

"Queensland's resilient and committed horticulture industry is on track to contribute almost $3 billion in gross value of production for the 20212022 season, the second largest season on record," Minister for Agricultural Industry Development and Fisheries and Minister for Rural Communities Mark Furner said.

"The Queensland Government recognises the importance of future-proofing this passionate sector from challenges such as climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and disruption to global supply chains."

The 10-year plan is called Future Fields and was developed by the horticulture industry and guided by Growcom to secure sustainable, long-term growth.

"That is why Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) has already invested $100,000 to support the visionary Future Fields plan and its current strategy priorities of boosting biosecurity, streamlining compliance, growing new foods, and adopting inno-

vation," Mr Farmer said. "Work already done has broken down barriers and strengthened shared goals along the supply chain and DAF will continue to support Future Fields and Growcom's efforts to grow the horticulture industry to reach its full potential."

One of the purposes of Future Fields was to encourage stakeholders along the fresh produce supply chain to work together in taking ownership and responsibility.

"Many of the big, intractable challenges we face as an industry are entirely within our power to address," Growcom Acting CEO Richard Shannon said. "Accordingly, Future Fields is creating a space for collaboration that would not ordinarily exist and gives all with a stake in our industry the opportunity to contribute and take action to make a real difference."

Mr Shannon pointed out that one of the keys to the plan's success has been contributions from a diverse group of Future Fields Leaders to champion and carry the strategy through its development and implementation.

"Growcom welcomes the State Government's enthusiastic support of Future Fields," he said, "and looks forward to our ongoing, productive relationship with DAF." Mr Furner is pleased by the cross-sector collaboration harnessing the strengths of all stakeholders.

"Growcom's impressive

efforts in pulling together more than 300 stakeholders stretching from Mareeba to Stanthorpe to help develop Future Fields has provided a blueprint for other industries looking to secure their future," Mr Furner said. "Their holistic approach to involve all industry sectors to provide strategic direction for the industry and grow leadership capability perfectly positions Future Fields to create viable solutions to the industry's biggest challenges.

"Future Fields is something the whole industry can be proud of, and I congratulate all involved in developing this creative, innovative, and successful example of collaboration across sectors."

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

Yay to Rural Aid Krista Bjorn editor@thedailyjournal.ink

P

rimary producers have received flood funding in a quick and efficient manner thanks to generous donors and corporate supporters that sent Rural Aid's flood funding surging past $1million.

"In the past three months, Rural Aid has distributed the vast majority of its donated flood funds to our flood-affected farmers," Rural Aid CEO John Warlters said. "This has enabled our farmers to take another step towards their recovery goals, while many

Ben’s winter tips Burning stacks As winter has finally descended, in that we have had a good frost, it is the time to be organising to burn of stack of wood.

As always precautions need to

wait for government assistance to hit their accounts. At least 500 payments have been made to Rural Aid's farmers in New South Wales and Queensland since the flood crisis, thanks to the outstanding level of donations from the public, and the backing and generosity of our many corporate supporters."

When Mooball fruit grower Peter Brils lost a portion of his fruit and trees in recent flood events, he was grateful for the financial assistance from Rural Aid that enabled him to start his flood recovery process by changing destructive water flows across his property.

"The rain impacts our harvest really intensely," Mr Brils said. "We lost a lot of crop, there is devastation," Mr Brils said. "I'm happy with financial help so I can get things done. I don't have bobcats, I don't have machinery. In my case, I need machinery and that costs money."

Mr Warlters said Rural Aid will continue to support flood-affected farmers as they take on long-term projects.

"Rural Aid offers our registered farmers a range of assistance measures," he said.

"From free counselling, to

fodder drops and water deliveries. Rural Aid is also proud to be supporting our farmers with additional assistance from Multikraft Probiotic Solutions. More than 30 producers have received aerial applications of their MicroBalance solution that turns rotting flood waste into a healthy by-product. Thanks to Rural Aid's unwavering supporters, we can continue to help our farmers into the future."

be taken such as clearing the ground a around a stack, having firefighting equipment ready and never using petrol as an accelerant. Additionally, despite the cool temperatures, burning in the evening, when there is no or low breeze is just common sense and always check to see if you need a permit.

Poddy's The cold snap invariably means new babies in the ground. So, it is critical any expectant mothers are well supervised. It is also worth having equipment organised for

caring for orphaned or rejected young. We are currently bottling a lamb who was rejected by her mother, thankfully 'Tips' is girl.

-Ben Boland

Chainsaws If you cut your own wood or simply use the chainsaw to clear trees on fences chances are your saw has been doing some work. As such it is critical to remember to keep up preventative maintenance. Not just keeping the chain sharp and tight, and the fluid levels up, also remember to check and clean both the spark plug and the air filter.

5

COUNTRYJOURNAL

Erosion: the US experience

Elizabeth Voneiff editor@thedailyjournal.ink

G

rowers in the Southern Downs experienced unusual and impactful run-off and erosion in the recent heavy rain periods. The American experience of improving grasslands may be of interest to growers here, particularly as it shows that some of the old methods may be the best.

In the debate over how to use agricultural lands to sequester carbon and help mitigate climate change, no-till and cover cropping get most of the attention.

But studies are starting to show that grazed perennial pastures, where the soil is rarely disturbed and continuously covered, may be the best strategy for locking carbon in the soil long-term.

"Our best and maybe only opportunity to really help mitigate climate change in our soils is with grazed grasslands," said Randy Jackson, agronomy professor at the University of Wisconsin and one of three featured speakers on the webinar. "But it has to be done well.

It's really important that we understand what good grazing

management is," he said.

The grassland plots also had more of a type of carbon that binds to minerals in deeper soil layers, facilitating its storage long-term.

Jackson noted, though, that there may be a limit to how much carbon can be stored in those deeper layers because there are only so many minerals in the soil. But he said this is something that soil scientists are still debating.

"This is the frontier of soil carbon research," he said.

The speakers were not suggesting the use of cover crops had no environmental benefits. Anna Cates, an assistant extension professor of soil health at the University of Minnesota, said they prevent runoff and soil erosion and use existing soil nitrogen, holding it in place. Some cover crops also act as natural fertilizer, allowing farmers to apply less synthetic nitrogen.

But the roots of cover crops stimulate microbial activity deep in the soil and this leads to carbon cycling: the microbes eat the carbon provided by the plants and then breathe it out, sending it back into the atmosphere.

Cates also discussed the importance of soil structure.

Soil with air pockets and unbroken clumps of sand, silt, and clay is healthier than soil lacking those structures because they allow water to

filter below the surface and help the soil to retain water longer.

"When we have crops growing, there's a really striking tale told by the water behavior," she said. "We want soil to let water in when it rains and store water

when it's dry. If your soil is leaving the field with wind or water, it's not healthy."

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

Goondi tackles rural crime Elizabeth Voneiff editor@thedailyjournal.ink

N

estled up against Queensland's southern border, the Goondiwindi Regional Council covers the five policing divisions of Talwood, Goondiwindi, Inglewood, Texas and Yelarbon, and includes 550 large rural properties as well as the communities in the town centres.

A new crime-fighting initiative in Goondiwindi might be worth keeping an eye on in the Southern Downs.

Sergeant Christopher Reeves, Officer-in-Charge of Inglewood Station, found that crime in rural areas is vastly under-reported.

"Much research indicated rural crime was heavily under-reported when compared to rates of reporting in residential areas, and we believed that crime trends and analysis were not being accurately recorded," Sergeant Reeves said.

"Together with my colleagues throughout the Goondiwindi Regional Council area, we conducted a survey of rural landowners which substantiated this belief.

"We found only around 44 percent of those surveyed took action to report crimes which had occurred on their properties.

"Some of these crimes were at the lower end of offending, such as trespassing, cut fences and theft of diesel or batteries, and property owners may have felt they were not worth reporting, or that it was easier to just wear the loss and get on with their work.

"However, this lack of awareness severely limits our ability to deploy policing resources effectively and identify hot spots and crime trends throughout the greater district."

Sergeant Reeves spent 12 months developing the 'My

Farm, My Community' project and secured the financial support of three sponsorsAustralian Rail Track Corporation's Inland Rail, Goondiwindi Regional Council and Elders.

He said the project had three clear objectives.

"Firstly, we needed to increase awareness amongst the farming community that we want them to report crime, no matter the scale, and to boost their confidence in our commitment and ability to act," Sergeant Reeves said.

"Through our financial sponsors we secured funding to produce corflute signage for landowners to affix to gates or fences to increase our police presence throughout the area.

"Secondly, we wanted to better equip ourselves with monitoring devices to help us catch and prosecute offenders in the rural environment.

"Once again, funding enabled us to purchase high end cameras designed to capture vehicle registration numbers."

The cameras purchased for the My Farm, My Community project are able to capture registration plates on vehicles travelling at speed, day or night, regardless of the conditions.

Equipped with 4G capability, they can be positioned in remote locations and hot spots, allowing police to identify and monitor suspect vehicles in real time and either deploy officers immediately to intercept or to conduct follow up investigations. "…we needed to increase awareness amongst the farming community that we want them to report crime…"

Sergeant Reeves said the third objective was to improve the flow of information between police and the farming community.

"During the pre-development phase of the project, it became apparent that landowners are often ill-equipped to give or receive important information relating to rural crime," Sergeant Reeves said.

"We have now set up a separate email account for landowners in the Goondiwindi Regional Council area to directly contact police to share information, and to receive updates and alerts specifically relevant for them.

"This particular aspect of the project has been very well received, as landowners know that any email they send is going to find its way to the right officer in charge or specialist detective and will be

acted on."

Rollout of the My Farm, My Community project began in May with a series of forums delivered by police in the communities of Goondiwindi, Talwood and Inglewood.

The forums have been well received and have enabled landowners to learn about the project as well as voice any concerns they have.

Ongoing rural forums will be held once every six months to coincide with post-harvest and planting schedules.

Sergeant Reeves said it was vitally important for police to work effectively with rural communities to get an accurate picture of crime trends, prevent crime, and catch and prosecute offenders.

"Police divisions within the Goondiwindi area have a significant population based on rural community.

"Being able to design and implement a proactive crime prevention project targeted specifically at our rural landowners not only allows police to build a greater collaboration with them but also addresses the lack of reporting from such community."

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

Crunchy, melty, perfect cheese toast Krista Bjorn editor@thedailyjournal.ink

I've loved grilled cheese sandwiches since I was a little girl.

Back then they were simple affairs, brown bread, butter, and cheddar cheese, preferably dipped in a big bowl of cream of tomato soup.

I still like a simple grilled cheese now and then, especially on cold, stormy days when only the familiar will do the trick, but these days I also love coming up with fancy grilled cheese ideas, playing around with different breads, cheeses, spreads, and fillings.

Bread For me, it all starts with the bread. I've tried everything from thick, chewy slices of sourdough and thin slices of dark rye or pumpernickel, to freshly baked airy white bread and hearty wholegrain bread, and they all work beautifully for toasted sandwiches. For fancy grilled cheese ideas, I like to incorporate special breads like cinnamon raisin bread, whole grain with hazelnuts and dried cherries, or sourdough studded with Kalamata olives. That extra hit of texture and flavour makes any toasted sandwich delicious.

Cheese The next stage is even more fun, choosing from a dazzling array of cheeses from around the world. While good old-fashioned tasty is always a stellar choice, let your imagination run wild and try creamy Havarti or Fontina, smooth Cambazola or Camembert, sharp Feta or tangy Parmesan. They are all welcome additions to a grilled cheese sandwich. You can also try unique cheeses like Wensleydale with dried cranberries to add both zing and sweetness.

Extras This is the time to use all those fancy spreads, jams, and chutneys you were gifted over the holidays. While many peo-

ple keep cheese relegated to the savoury side of food, it pairs marvellously with sweet things.

Sharp cheeses go splendidly with strawberry jam, Camembert is great with fig preserves, and thinly shaved Parmesan is gorgeous with cranberry sauce, especially

when you stir in a bit of port wine first. Chutney is one of my favourite things to add to a toasted cheese sandwich. The combination of exotic spices, caramelised onions, and plump raisins or diced mango is wonderful with cheese.

If sweet isn't your cup of tea, try a savoury spread like basil or sundried tomato pesto, black olive tapenade, or a smear of mashed roasted garlic.

Sharp Tasty Cheese with Pork Rillettes and Caramelised Onion and Sultana Chutney on Rye Ingredients: 4 slices rye bread Butter, softened 1 jar/can pork rillettes (or devilled ham) 4 slices sharp tasty cheese 1 jar Caramelised Onion and Sultana Chutney (or chutney of your choice) Directions: If using a sandwich press, start heating it.

Lay 4 slices of bread on clean countertop.

Spread each slice with butter.

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Parmesan Cheese and Cranberry Port Wine Sauce on Wheat Ingredients: 4 slices wheat bread Butter, softened Thin slices of Par mesan cheese, enough to cover 2 pieces of bread 1 small jar Cranberry Sauce 1 Tbsp Port Wine Directions: If using a sandwich press, start heating it.

Lay 4 slices of bread on clean countertop.

Spread each slice with butter.

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Feta Cheese with Fresh Tomatoes and Black Olive Tapenade on Wheat Ingredients: 4 slices wheat bread Butter, softened ½ block of firm Feta cheese 1 large, ripe tomato 2 Tbsp black olive tapenade or pesto Directions: If using a sandwich press, start heating it.

Lay 4 slices of bread on clean countertop.

Spread each slice with butter.

Cover 2 slices of bread with black olive tapenade or pesto.

Top each slice with thin slices of tomato and thin slices of Feta cheese. Cover each slice with a piece of buttered bread to form two sandwiches.

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

Vax for Hendra Staff reports editor@thedailyjournal.ink

Horse-owners on the Southern Downs are urged to protect their animals from Hendra virus through vaccination.

Queensland Minister for Agriculture, Mark Furner said the identification by researchers of a Hendra virus variant in samples collected in recent years was a timely reminder of the need for horses to be vaccinated.

"The research findings highlight the importance of horse owners and vets to remain vigilant in areas previously thought to be outside the range of Hendra spill over events," Mr Furner said.

"After reviewing this research, Biosecurity Queensland's advice to horse owners and veterinarians remains the same - vaccination of horses is the most

effective way to help manage Hendra virus disease.

"A registered vaccine is available to help prevent Hendra virus disease in horses.

"Additionally, sound hygiene and biose-

au.

9

curity measures should be adopted as routine practice for all horse contact."

Mr Furner said, although the general biosecurity risk to the horse industry had not changed, the identification of a new variant should be a reminder to all members of the industry.

"Hendra virus infection has potentially serious health implications for both humans and horses," Mr Furner said.

"Owners who suspect a horse might be infected with Hendra virus should immediately contact their veterinarian."

Detailed information about Hendra virus is available at www.daf.qld.gov.

Picture of the Hendra virus.

New government, new milk policy Krista Bjorn editor@thedailyjournal.ink

W

ith a newly installed F e d e r a l Government, eastAUSmilk was eager to see how Labour's agricultural policies would affect dairy farmers in Australia.

"During the election, agricultural policy was announced in the broad brush but as always, the 'devil is in the detail'", eastAUSmilk Co-CEO Shaughn Morgan said, noting that a renewed focus towards the Pacific to increase farm labour and promises to increase biosecurity funding to help prevent lumpy skin and foot and mouth diseases breaching Australia's borders are welcome.

"These holistic issues are of most immediate concern to farmers, especially within dairy, and we welcome these commitments," Mr Morgan said.

"However, other immediate matters also need to be considered and addressed."

One of the biggest issues facing dairy farmers is increased input costs.

"Fertiliser, fodder, fuel and grain prices doubled in price over the past 12 months, placing undue pressure on dairy farmers to continue to survive within the dairy industry," Mr Morgan said. "Dairy farmers on the Atherton Tablelands, for instance, are facing some of the highest fodder costs with an average of $350 a tonne for pasture hay."

These soaring costs are contributing to the decline in the number of dairy farmers in Australia, particularly where the farm-gate price received doesn't equal the costs of production.

"Hence the real need for supermarkets to increase the price of home-brand milk to a minimum of $2/L," he said.

"In turn, processors must guarantee to pass these gains back to the farmers in their milk price."

Mr Morgan was also pleased to hear Labour's commitment to convene a dairy symposium.

"It will enable the dairy industry to consider ways in which to stop the decline of dairy farms and provide solutions to ensure a future for generations of dairy farmers to come," he said. "The symposium will enable dairy representatives, from dairy farmers to supermarkets, to address a vast and complex number of issues which were identified in numerous recent parliamentary and ACCC reports. These include the dairy mandatory code, input costs, 'truth in labelling', market failure to

name but a few of the issues."

He explained that the symposium will not solve all the issues facing the dairy industry, but it is a good start.

"It will help crystallise the ongoing issues and the way in which we need to find a collaborative solution," Mr Morgan said. "Otherwise, the dairy industry we know today, which itself requires strong positive change, will be very different to the industry that will or will not exist in the future."

COUNTRYJOURNAL GENERAL KNOWLEDGE CROSSWORD

21 22 23 24 25

9 10 11 12 13

16

18

20

6

is to be what (7)

14

also called (7) Which SA town west of Lake Torrens, was established as a weapons research base in 1948 (7) On which river does Taree lie (7) Name a very long Australian river (7) What is a word that describes a person who makes trials or experiments (7)

Victorian university (6) E-QUATIONS 7

Has Man Mrs Much

or perfect in form, is said to be what (7) 17 What is a woven coloured cord worn around the shoulder of uniforms (7) 18 When one tidies something up one does what (7) 20 What do we call one who cultivates land for growing food (6)

CURIO The yoyo is one of the oldest known toys in civilisation, with an early image found on ancient Greek pottery (c. 500 BC).

The yoyo spun its way around the world travelling from China through Asia to Europe and it was the first toy to be used by an astronaut in outer space.

CLUES: Bite (5) Bush call (5) Energy unit (3) Everyone (3) Gusting (7) Inclined (5) Lettuce (3) Major artery (5) Presumptuous (7) Social insect (3)

2

3

BIYWORD

1

DOWN 1 Ship hands 2 Affection 3 Applies 4 Bowed

L E E A R D N G T

Solve the crossword.

Each answer has four letters.

ACROSS 1 Association 5 Flower 6 Balanced 7 Left on a map

4

5 6

B

E

F

L

N

S

X

14 12

2

16

4

6

8

024

E E F G G I

L L N N O O

O R R S T W

SOLUTIONS

024 B L O W I N G

QUICK THINK

A A A B C D

5 Rose, 6 Even, 7 West.

A DOWN: 1 Crew, 2 Love, C O © 3 Uses, 4 Bent.

F O R S T A

T

B:14, E:12, F:2, L:16, N:4 S:6, X:8

024

Build it yourself using the clues and each of the twenty-four letters once only to form ten words: five across and five down. A key word (bold clue) builds on the letter set in the grid.

14 12

024

Red Rug Ugly

BIYWORD

are shown in the right-hand cells. Create remaining values using clues in centre cells.

SUDOKU

Mug Mums Per Pump

15 To be symmetrical

E-QUATIONS

© Auspac Media - meq0034

P S R M G Y

Cups Erase Exit Glow

034 Some values are in the right hand cells.

Create remaining values using Letters Aclues to Z have a numbercells. value. Some in centre

E+F X+N L-B B+F L÷N E-S L÷F

P E U U L M

23

Letters have a number value

B E F L N S X

D M R G O A

Find the following words in the grid. They may read in any direction, even diagonally.

Some letters are used more than once.

25

5 What are summerhouses

S U U A W N

21

24

13

4 Name a renowned

17

22

for a convent (7)

3 To be more hirsute,

15 19

7

DOWN 2 Name another term

14

A C U P S V

7 SUDOKU

19

8

CROSSWORD

16

H H T I X E

7

G W M K L A H O M A Z O N L D E R M A N B E I A L O R N S L A N G L F A E A N N U A L E R Y T M O A N E R C E R N R A D I S H

13

6

024

A N T H E M U A O E N S I G N N R A R E L I C S R E H D Y E R S A M P E R P H L O I T E R I R R N U I S A N G C L

12

5

QUICK THINK ACROSS: 1 Club,

11

4

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10

3

138-024

9

2

E-QUATIONS B:14, E:12, F:2, L:16, N:4 S:6, X:8

8

praise, or patriotism (6) Name a Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway hit (8) Name an alternative term for a standard-bearer (6) What do we call an elected local government representative (8) What are surviving memorials of things past (6) What is the radiance surrounding the head of a sacred personage (4) Which term describes those who apply colour (5) What is the jargon of a particular class, profession, etc (5) What is a less familiar term for money (4) Name another term for yearly (6) What might we call a person who lingers idly (8) Which term describes a whinger (6) What is a highly annoying thing or person (8) Name a crisp, pungent, edible root of a particular plant (6)

1

MINI WORD FIND

P S R M G Y

ACROSS 1 What is a hymn, as of devotion

723

MINI WORD FIND H A S D P H C U M E T U U R U I P A G U X S W O L E V N A M

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COUNTRYJOURNAL

I

f someone wrote out a list of 100 political issues right now and Australia becoming a republic was one of them, I would rate the republic question as the least important.

I don’t have a strong view on it either way, all that matters to me is that Australia can compete in the Commonwealth Games as the Republic of South Africa still does.

The Commonwealth doesn’t have the importance it once had from a trade perspective and we can have a Queen or King of the Commonwealth.

The worst thing a Labor Prime Minister can do is come into power and start talking issues like a republic. From memory, I voted No in the referendum last time but only because the way the president or head of state was to be elected.

There was some group going to be put together to decide the president, my view was the people should decide.

We have had at least one president in Warwick since the referendum, President Michael Higgins from Ireland, who had relatives in Australia, including the Warwick area, and was at a family function at the then Abbey of the Roses.

In more than 30 years in newspapers, one of the nicest things I had to do was take photos of President Higgins with his Australian relatives, it is one of those times when everyone wants to be in a photo, just like when you turn up at a primary school with a camera. By sec-

The Long Paddock with Gerard Walsh

ondary school, no one wants their photo.

I didn’t realise it initially but President Higgins was a ceremonial type president rather than a head of state like President Joe Biden.

It wouldn’t worry me in the least if we became a republic especially after the Queen didn’t attend more of the celebrations in her honour.

I am of the opinion that the Queen’s minders didn’t allow her to join in more of the platinum celebrations and it wasn’t her fault at age 96.In all reality, they would have said “Liz, you can’t go to this one”.

A lot of planning and money went into the event but more planning should have gone into how to get the Queen to the people, at least for the people who camped close to the palace for three days so they could catch a glimpse of her other than a long way away on the balcony.

They could have started work on setting up a popemobile which I understand is for one person, bulletproof and easy to manoeuvre. Plenty of popes have got around when they were frail.

Many grandparents or great grandparents have gone to weddings and funerals when it would have been so easy to stay at home, often at great risk to their health.

My own mother had a stroke and had been in hospital for three months before our wedding but some women offered to look after MEMBER FOR SOUTHERN DOWNS her, it wasn’t a thought that she couldn’t make the wedding, and many with worse conditions than Mum have attended similar events.

If the Queen was unable to attend any more of the celebrations than she did, it is time for her to stand down and let Charles take over.

That is one petition I will sign but I certainly aren’t going to start a petition out on the farm at Greymare.Don’t get me wrong, the Queen has done a great job over 70 tough years and been a great credit to the Monarchy. e: southern.downs@parliament.qld.gov.au I did get to see the Queen from about 5m away at Cloudland.

• 9 Victoria St, Stanthorpe (Mon-Fri) Sitting MLA David Cory was • 56 King St, Warwick (Mon-Tue) allowed to take his wife and two

James Lister MP

Ph: (07) 4524 7700 ________________

_________________________

1970s.

11

guests to a reception to the Queen and invited his secretary Margaret Singleton and I was the fourth in the group. I was in about the third row as she went around the room.

Cloudland was a ballroom at Bowen Hills in Brisbane that was knocked down in the

Wet as ever Two weeks ago, we had more rain as everyone knows and the Condamine River came down yet again but no great damage this time.

Floodwater has been on the farming land of Glen and Janelle Whitton near the weir bridge seven times since November.

What stands out on the Condamine River as you look downstream from the passenger seat of the car from Madsen Bridge is the amount of mud on the edges of the river.

Some of that soil would be from land worth $6000 an acre, or $15,000 a hectare.

I am a great stickler for doing everything we can to stop erosion and we put every needed contour bank on our property before we cultivated but you just can’t protect against erosion on a flood plain other than with minimum tillage.

We finished the month with 10.4mm on May 31 and then 29.6mm in early June at Greymare and even more sport was cancelled on the Southern Downs.

Tribute to Chris The Daily Journal printed two tributes on the late Chris Collins last Friday, a sportsman, businessman but most importantly a family man to his wife Jo, daughter Sophie and son Alastair.

He played in the era Stanthorpe had a team in the Toowoomba Rugby League A-grade competition and Chris would have played many games on Sullivan Oval.

Only the best 17 from the competition make it to the Toowoomba Clydesdales team and he was in the representative team for a few seasons as well as playing in a State Mini League.

He had plenty of speed and played wing and centre for the Cowboys and mainly wing for the Clydesdales.

Chris twice had the most points in the Toowoomba Rugby League A-grade competition and made one Toowoomba Chronicle Team of the Year.

12

COUNTRYJOURNAL

Little change in wool market Bruce McLeish Elders

A

nother week of little change in the Australian wool market again this week saw prices a smidge lower in local currency terms, and just slightly dearer in USD terms.

Good style fine and superfine merino types are still attracting keen support from buyers with European connections, or a European final destination in mind. These types are in such short supply that many traders are now hesitant to offer them to clients, fearing they will be unable to fill the order in a timely manner.

Not a particularly unusual situation at this time of year, but the good prices over the past season has also meant there are virtually none of these wools in hold stocks either, for traders to draw upon. August will hopefully see an increase in supply of these wools, although the favourable seasonal conditions will also mean that micron on average will also be coarser than last year.

The medium merino categories saw little change for the week, with the better wools dearer, but being averaged out in price by the inferior wool prices, so the average indicators showed little change. Topmakers from China purchased according to selection, and their processing capabilities, so they operated in the auction room as quality dictated. Knitwear types for combing were again well supported, but the seasonality of the carding wool sector appears to have peaked and those wools eased by 50 cents or so.

Crossbreds both here and across the Tasman performed poorly as

the processing trade becomes more and more nervous about the global economy and consumer demand. Everyone is closely watching the currency markets at present and hoping for a weaker local currency to boost the export competitiveness of Australian wool.

In South Africa the second-tolast sale for the season was held and failed to produce many outstanding results. Chinese based entities still operated, albeit at a low basis given they are still obliged to store the wool in the Cape pending a resolution of the FMD protocols, which to date have been zero. China has bigger problems on its plate it would seem, and it is difficult to gain access to the right people to get any decisions made about the biosecurity issues. Other traders struggled to find enough good wools among the predominantly prem shorn catalogues to fill orders for Indian or European topmakers. Although there were still 52% of RWS certified wools in the merino catalogues, the quality has deteriorated to such an extent that the RWS premium has now fallen to a mere 10% over uncertified wools in that market now.

Speaking of biosecurity, the presence of FMD on Australia's doorstep in Indonesia is a huge wake-up call to all livestock producers here. For the past 100 years we have been relatively secure and safe from such outbreaks, but with international borders open again and travellers bolting for the airport gates there is a much higher risk of an incursion. Much work has already been done to map out the

response should an outbreak occur, but it will not be easy to control and nigh on impossible to eradicate given the population of feral animals across much of Australia. Similar to South Africa, an outbreak of FMD in Australia would see the immediate cancellation of exports of wool, which would be devasting for the wool industry, given our reliance on a single market in China. A stockpile of wool would quickly build up at the rate of 40,000 bales per week, and wool growers cashflow would grind to a complete halt.

The cost of EID tags at around $1.30 each seems a relatively cheap insurance policy in the larger scheme of things, to at least manage stock movements should an outbreak occur.

That other virus is still causing a few issues in China, although thankfully Shanghai residents are now able to venture out again after more than 2 months of captivity. Getting tested a couple of times a day, and showing the results to every establishment you wish to enter is pretty much the norm, but at least people and goods are now moving again.

The Covid zero strategy would appear to be working, for now, but it has taken a huge toll on their economy. The government growth target of 5.5% now appears a distant memory, and although such a target has never not been achieved in modern Chinese history, it seems like this year they may miss. The government is rolling out some massive stimulus programs to the tune of USD120bn, and Premier Li recently had a Zoom call with around 100,000 officials to explain what they needed to do.

It would have been a long Q&A session if everyone had a question. The stimulus levers at the government's disposal are becoming somewhat limited however, with the tech sector having been spanked into submission, the property sector still reeling from bad debts and company failures. Unemployment is already comparatively high for a country in which not so long ago, everyone had a job, government or private. But, given the importance of getting their economy back on track prior to the National Congress meeting in November, the government will pull out all stops to make it happen, and China knows how to do stimulus. Apart from the infrastructure spending and relaxation of rules for property development and industry we should also expect to see some vouchers handed out to citizens to encourage retail activity, as has been done in the past. Spread across a few hundred million people this could make a difference. The domestic processing trade is currently watching this space, and getting ready to pull the trigger if it does occur. They don't want to act too soon, and end up with a pile of unsold garments, but the clock is ticking and they need to move soon, if they are going to meet the sales deadline. Given the reducing supply of wool in Australia, if there is a sudden recovery in the Chinese domestic market, there will be fireworks.

If there is no sudden recovery, we will still see a firm, steady market.

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