Miller Magazine Issue: 142 October 2021

85 INTERVIEW MILLER / OCTOber 2021 Absolutely. Australia has suffered through a series of droughts in recent years. The 2018 – 2019 droughts re- sulted in extremely poor production, with much of the impact being felt in the eastern states. Western Austra- lia, the largest export state, had eastern states livestock producers as their largest customer during this period, as exports turned to transhipments. At the height of the drought, Australia produced 14.4mmt, versus a ten-year average of 24.5mmt, and a far cry from bumper produc- tion in 2020 of 33.3mmt, and projections of >32mmt in 2021. The large production, in combination with high prices driven by poor events overseas, has led to a golden pe- riod where farmers can recoup the losses from previous droughts. While many other nations will be struggling to fulfill the export market requirements, Australia is back in action for a second year. Whilst many of our markets are existing ones, such as many parts of South East Asia, we will have the capacity to reach further afield. Will Australia be able to supply the market? Does Australia have the export infrastructure to meet de- mand? What are the major challenges for the Austra- lian grain industry? Australia has shown the capability of exporting large quantities. The current season has seen 17.2mmt ex- ported between January and July, ahead of the previ- ous export record year of 2017. In 2021, Australia will be well-positioned to participate in the market. (Chart 1, Chart 2,) The major challenges are labour. On the supply chain side, we have had staff poached from the grain industry to work in the resources sector (iron ore/coal), such as site staff and train drivers. The wages on offer are sub- stantial and have attracted a high number of workers. Conversely, in the farming sector, Australia was previ- ously reliant on overseas workers to conducted harvest. These were generally backpackers from North America and Europe from farming backgrounds. The outbreak of COVID and strict lockdown rules in Australia has resulted in no access to backpackers for this season. To combat this, there have been a number of creative solutions, from recruiting ex-soldiers to employ- ing laid-off commercial pilots. The crop will be harvested, but as discussed previously, the impact of a wet harvest will be exacerbated by the lack of labour.