BROADACRE CROPS, Australia, year ended 30 June 2017
Production
Change in production since
Area
Change in area since
Yield
Change in yield since
2015-16
2015-16
2015-16
'000 t
%
'000 ha
%
t/ha
%
Wheat for grain
31 819
43
12 191
8
2.6
32
Oats for grain
2 266
74
1 028
25
2.2
39
Barley for grain
13 506
50
4 834
18
2.8
27
Grain sorghum
994
-44
368
-29
2.7
-22
Maize for grain
436
9
68
27
6.4
-14
Rice for grain
807
195
82
209
9.8
-5
Triticale for grain
150
18
62
-21
2.4
50
Cotton lint (a)
774
41
519
85
1.5
-24
Canola
4 313
55
2 681
28
1.6
21
Sugar cane cut for crushing
36 561
6
402
7
90.9
0
(a) Includes irrigated and non-irrigated cotton
KEY POINTS
2016-17 was an exceptional year for cropping, with favourable weather conditions leading farmers to plant larger areas and reap higher yields. This is in stark contrast to the 2015-16 season which was one of the worst in recent years. Total area planted to cereal and other broadacre crops increased 17% in 2016-17 to 25.7 million hectares.
National wheat production increased by 43% since 2015-16 to 31.8 million tonnes. Favourable seasonal conditions including above average spring rainfall resulted in good to exceptional yields in much of the Australian cropping region, particularly in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. Nationally, the area planted to wheat increased by 8% compared with 2015-16 with New South Wales and South Australia experiencing the greatest area increases of 11% and 23% to 3.2 million hectares and 2.2 million hectares respectively.
National oat production has increased by 74% since 2015-16 to 2.3 million tonnes. The greatest contributor to the increase was Western Australia contributing 46% of the national production. The state experienced an increase of 72% in production since 2015-16 to 1 million tonnes. Victoria also increased its oat production significantly by 166% to 0.5 million tonnes.
Barley production increased nationally by 50% to 13.5 million tonnes compared to 2015-16. The increase in production was driven by increases in Victoria and South Australia, up 178% and 75% respectively. Area planted to barley increased in all states up 18% to 4.8 million hectares nationally compared with the previous season.
At a national level, sorghum production fell by 44% in 2016-17, with the most significant decline seen in Queensland (Australia’s largest sorghum producing state) which was down 49%. Warmer conditions through summer in Queensland during 2016-17 adversely impacted sorghum production while the low sorghum price at the commencement of the season saw many farmers choosing to plant other broadacre crops instead. Cyclone Debbie, which impacted coastal areas of Queensland in late March and early April 2017, also impacted some sorghum crops.
After a poor year in 2015-16 production for rice increased, returning to levels closer to historical averages in 2016-17, up 195% to 807,000 tonnes. This is entirely driven by production in New South Wales, up 207% . Area planted to rice in 2016-17 increased 209%, with New South Wales up 232%. Farmers took advantage of higher prices, timely rains and high water content in the soil to plant this year, compared to 2015-16 where they decided not to plant and sold off their water allocations instead.
Canola production increased by 55% to 4.3 million tonnes in 2016-17 and the area planted to canola also increased, up 28% to 2.7 million hectares from 2015-16. Most states showed an increase in canola production in 2016-17, the largest of which, Western Australia (contributing 47% of Australia’s canola production) increased by 54% to 2 million tonnes where farmers were encouraged to plant canola this year due to price, demand and forecasted good weather.
Cotton lint production increased by 41% to 774 million kilograms in 2016-17. While cotton production returned to similar levels seen prior to 2014-15, predictions of a near record season were not realised due to a wet winter coupled with a dry, hot summer with persistent heatwave conditions, substantially reducing yields.
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