A recent officially produced statistic managed to surprise even us.
That is the quite staggering fact that around 99% of Australia’s roughly 134,000 farming businesses are still family owned.
Now although some business people sitting in their penthouse offices in some of the big cities might think that implies an inhibitor to industrial-scale development of the agricultural sector, many people in the industry itself think that is a great thing.
All around the world, demand for food is increasing but in high-value markets such as Europe and North America, quality and a close link between the owner, producer and even retailer, is becoming an increasingly important marketing factor.
In some countries in Europe this link has been largely lost with major commercial conglomerations now owning much of the land and that in turn has led to certain issues in terms of trying to identify direct accountability when something goes wrong. In Australia, that’s a problem that’s unlikely to arise in the foreseeable future.
The report goes on to highlight the potential opportunities for the Australian farming sector, particularly arising out of our relative proximity to Asia and the potential booming demand for food from countries such as China and Korea. That’s good news for farmers and commercial concerns like White’s Tractors and our sales of Kubota tractors but it’s important to be on our guard against complacency.
Times are still tough in farming and as the above-mentioned report clearly highlights, it seems unlikely that agriculture is going to suddenly turn into a new Klondike at any time in the foreseeable future.
So, we will continue to need good international trade deals and enlightened State and Federal laws/regulations that are designed to help the industry grow in a sustainable fashion. If those things are put into place, the risks of the mass industrialization and ‘corporatization’ of Australian farming may be relatively small and more easily managed out.
That is the quite staggering fact that around 99% of Australia’s roughly 134,000 farming businesses are still family owned.
Now although some business people sitting in their penthouse offices in some of the big cities might think that implies an inhibitor to industrial-scale development of the agricultural sector, many people in the industry itself think that is a great thing.
In some countries in Europe this link has been largely lost with major commercial conglomerations now owning much of the land and that in turn has led to certain issues in terms of trying to identify direct accountability when something goes wrong. In Australia, that’s a problem that’s unlikely to arise in the foreseeable future.
The report goes on to highlight the potential opportunities for the Australian farming sector, particularly arising out of our relative proximity to Asia and the potential booming demand for food from countries such as China and Korea. That’s good news for farmers and commercial concerns like White’s Tractors and our sales of Kubota tractors but it’s important to be on our guard against complacency.
Times are still tough in farming and as the above-mentioned report clearly highlights, it seems unlikely that agriculture is going to suddenly turn into a new Klondike at any time in the foreseeable future.
So, we will continue to need good international trade deals and enlightened State and Federal laws/regulations that are designed to help the industry grow in a sustainable fashion. If those things are put into place, the risks of the mass industrialization and ‘corporatization’ of Australian farming may be relatively small and more easily managed out.
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