Month: October 2015

Changes to biosecurity arrangements impacting on the banana industry will be made by mid-2016 as part of the State Government’s new Biosecurity Act. The changes are part of the government’s introduction of a “General Biosecurity Obligation” (GBO) which places an obligation on all members of…

ABGC Chief Executive Officer Jim Pekin reports on the work of the banana industry’s peak body. Occasionally growers ask “what does ABGC do? ”The two-second answer is “ABGC is the national banana industry development organisation”. We provide a range of banana-specific services to growers. ABGC…

Converted shipping containers, cattle tags, specially designed spray nozzles and catwalks are just some of the items innovative banana growers are using to protect their farms from Panama Tropical Race 4 (TR4). Banana growers met at the industry’s first TR4 day at Wangan in North…

New information about the New South Wales banana industry is emerging as part of survey research. Rhyll Cronin reports. It’s taken dozens of phone calls, farm visits and mouse clicks but slowly an up-to-date picture of the NSW banana industry is emerging. NSW Banana Industry…

The discovery that a diagnosis of Panama Tropical Race 4 (TR4) on a Mareeba banana farm was a “false positive” and the farm was clear of the disease prompted a major review of TR4 diagnostics in Queensland. The independent review by consultancy group Deloitte confirmed…

Two global experts on Panama Tropical Race 4 (TR4) have advised on control measures for North Queensland and warned the upcoming wet season is a danger period. Professor Altus Viljoen, Chairman of Plant Pathology at South Africa’s Stellenbosch University in South Africa, and Taiwan Banana…

Losses of Nitrogen continue to be a major environmental issue across agriculture. Can controlled-release fertilisers help banana farmers achieve best-practice targets? By Jeff Daniells, John Armour, Christina Mortimore and Stewart Lindsay   Targets set in the Reef Plan 2050 to improve water quality in the…