A week is a long time in ag. Catch up on what you might have missed.
Cattle prices soar, including for stud stock
PRICES have continued to soar for beef cattle - from steers, in-calf heifers and even stud stock - reaching record levels.
This has, of course, created a lot of debate about the flow-on effect down the value chain and how long these prices can last.
But there is also a sense that this could be the start of a new situation, with consumption not flagging despite prices lifting.
In saleyards across the country, demand has continued to stay high, even as slaughter numbers rise.
And it's not just in commercial cattle that the big numbers are being seen. There has also been some very significant investments in genetics.
At a bull sale in central west NSW, a new Angus breed record was set when a Millah Murrah bull sold for $280,000. And that is not a typo - there should be six figures there.
It wasn't the only stand-out of the sale with another bull selling at $240,000 and a yearling bull making $110,000 - also a record.
Border woes rear head again
While the border community has been dealing with a lot in the past 18 months, the situation has flared again in the past week as the SA government looked at tightening the restrictions for those coming into SA from Victoria and NSW.
A recent change was the push to require anyone entering the state having had a negative COVID-19 test from the 72 hours prior.
This late change - and some poor communication - led to a number of Victorian livestock transporters being turned away from the border, due to them still following the previous rules of weekly negative COVID tests.
Part of this issue was also caused by a low number of sites for testing in Western Victoria, but this was then helped by the establishment of a new testing site at Nhill, Vic.
But it was not the only change causing concern for these communities, with a requirement for anyone entering SA to have at least one COVID vaccination by September 23.
This has since been clarified to only apply to essential workers, giving border community members a little longer to make their plans.
AWI seeks out new blood
The field is open for potential directors of the Australian Wool Innovation board, with nominees needing to have their requisite signatures in by September 20 - ahead of the November election.
AWI has just released a new app to help in capturing these signatures but, with it only available on certain tablets that need to be mailed out to hopeful candidates and mailed back again, some have questioned if the timing has been right.
There are also concerns that much of the negative attention about the AWI board in recent years has turned off potential candidates.
An independent review says 40 per cent of levy payers indicate the behaviour by some board directors in recent years would act as a deterrent to others putting their hands up for a stint at driving the industry ahead.
One levy payer and sheep producer it has not put off is Tumby Bay Merino breeder Sydney Lawrie.
Mr Lawrie says he has a passion for the industry and wants to help drive the sector forward.
Meanwhile a new director on another sheep industry board, Paul Cocking from the Australian Wool Growers Association, says there needs to be a change in the research and development for the wool industry, in order to deliver the benefits from grower levies.
Crop pest creates levy burden
On the topic of levies, some SA graingrowers have expressed some concern about an increase in their levies, for the purpose of eradicating a potential pest.
An additional 11-cent levy has been temporarily added onto the charges of graingrowers, as a method of cost-recovery of $1.7 million for PIRSA and Biosecurity SA as they work to stamp out lens snail - which so far has only been found at North Haven.
Grains Producer SA chair Adrian McCabe said the industry body was hopeful this situation was a once-off and there would be no future pests popping up.
Land hit spring property market
It's not just beef prices that have soared in recent times, with property prices hitting some dizzying heights.
So dizzying, that it is causing concern to financial institutions.
ANZ Bank says on its present trajectory, rural land values could jump by almost a third by the end of this decade, which begs the question "how high is too high?"
There are plenty of people watching the property prices with interest, particularly as the spring selling season kicked off with the offer of more than 50 farms under the Corinella Group, including one from Naracoorte.
Elsewhere, there is more long-held country hitting the market in the Mallee and Far North, and two more in the Coorong, while a recent auction just across the border led to results 60pc above the vendor's expectations.
If you'd prefer to head somewhere a little more remote, there's always the chance to get your hands on a hot date... or a date farm out of Alice Springs.
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