Category: News & Media

Carl Rickson has certainly taken the road less travelled on his way to becoming a Plant Health Officer. The newest face in the Australian Banana Growers’ Council office has played NRL, skippered boats, worked on a ski mountain in Japan and even in rail. But it’s clear he brings…

Organophosphate insecticides are commonly used to control insect pests in bananas, including thrips, caterpillars and borers. Chlorpyrifos dust is a common option, but it can poison humans as well as insects if absorbed through the skin, inhaled or swallowed. Under state laws, businesses are therefore required to ensure the health and safety…

Coffee Bean Weevil Araecerus fasciculatus has been removed from the list of quarantine pests for WA. The beetle is now considered a permitted organism and all previous regulations have been revoked after the pest was found in multiple locations in the Perth area. This means that although banana loads entering WA…

Walkamin growers, Rob and Krista Watkins (Natural Evolution), were awarded the prestigious Peter Kenny Medal in November. The Medal, which includes a prize of $3000, is awarded annually to an individual or organisation who has made an outstanding contribution to Queensland’s agriculture, fisheries and/or forestry sector in terms of innovation…

Funding has been secured for a further four years of Best Management Practice delivery through the Queensland Department of Environment and Science. The second phase of the project will focus on delivering extension to growers to help them improve their farming practices and profitability. Reef Extension Officer Rob…

A unique insight into the Australian banana industry is now available through the benchmarking program’s final report. Published by Howard Hall, of Pinnacle Agribusiness, the Hort Innovation funded project involved data collection throughout 2015/16 and 2016/17. For the first time, a breakdown of environmental management and farm biosecurity is also included. The participant…

One of the industry’s strongest advocates, David Peasley, will retire at the end of 2018. Mr Peasley spent almost 50 years working tirelessly for the banana industry, including on preventing imports, trialing new varieties and fighting Bunchy Top. In 2015, the Australian Banana Growers’ Council (ABGC) presented him with the ‘Award of…