Hay Matters

In this episode of Hay Matters from Feed Central and LocalAg, host Jon Paul Driver chats with Marty Conroy, the Agronomy Services lead for Northern Australia at Barenbrug Seeds . From his base in Northern NSW, Marty offers a practical look at tropical pasture systems across Queensland, the NT, and northern NSW. He unpacks the science behind C3 and C4 grasses, explains how feed quality directly imp...

In the latest Hay Matters Podcast brought to you by LocalAg and Feed Central, host Jon Paul Driver catches up with Stefan Hollmann, a German-born machinery operator and high-density baling expert based in South Australia. After arriving for one harvest, Stefan stayed on and has since produced over 100,000 bales across eight years with the Schusters. He reflected on his recent 7,500-kilometre trip...

In the latest Hay Matters Podcast brought to you by LocalAg and Feed Central, Key Account Sales Manager Alex Smith shares insights from the ground as he travels across the south-eastern states. With southern regions facing dry conditions and Queensland still dealing with the impacts of flooding and beginning their recovery, Alex discusses the shifting dynamics in feed production, market demand, an...

In the latest Hay Matters Podcast, brought to you by LocalAg and Feed Central, Jon Paul Driver is joined by cattle producer, advocate and agfluencer Gillian Fennell. Gillian has spent time serving on industry boards and committees at a local, state and national level, and has a special interest in on-farm succession planning and the impact that it has on farming families and communities. With over...

In the latest Hay Matters Podcast, brought to you by LocalAg and Feed Central, Jon Paul Driver sits down with Megan Ford to discuss her journey in agriculture, the evolution of Feed Central, and the role of women in the industry. From the early days of building a business while raising a young family to the challenges of expansion and the launch of LocalAg, Megan shares her experiences and the les...

Podcast Highlights In the latest Hay Matters Podcast, brought to you by LocalAg and Feed Central, Jon Paul Driver and National Sales Manager Dave Clothier explore the early days of Feed Central's LocalAg and the wider impact it will have on Australian agriculture. They discuss how extreme weather, from drought and scorching heat in the south to heavy rains and flooding in the north, is reshaping f...

In this episode of the Hay Matters Podcast brought to you by LocalAg and Feed Central , host Jon Paul Driver is joined by Dr Allan Rattey, National Oat Breeder at InterGrain , to explore the future of Australian hay and forage production. They discuss how cutting-edge technology is accelerating oat breeding, the importance of balancing yield with quality, and why fibre digestibility is a game chan...

To start the new year on the Feed Central Hay Matters podcast, Jon Paul Driver sat down with Tim Ford, Director of Feed Central, to pull back the curtain on Local Ag - a bold new marketplace that’s been 22 years in the making. Born from decades of experience, countless conversations with farmers, and a relentless drive to innovate, Local Ag is set to revolutionise how Australian agriculture connec...

Podcast Highlights In the final Feed Central Hay Matters Podcast for 2024, Jon Paul Driver catches up with National Sales Manager Dave Clothier to discuss the challenges and market shifts faced by hay producers during the 2024 season and what we can expect in the year ahead. Early in the year, drought cleared stockpiles of low-grade hay, but wet weather later reduced overall production and caused...

In the latest Feed Central Hay Matters Podcast, Host Jon Paul Driver talks to Steve Page, Grower Services Manager, about the challenges faced by hay producers during a season marked by wet weather, frost events, and fluctuating market dynamics. Steve, who has recently been on the road visiting growers, shares insights into what the season looked like and the impact of these challenges across Austr...

Podcast Highlights In this episode of the Feed Central Hay Matters Podcast, host Jon Paul Driver welcomes Dr. Sabrina Greenwood from CSIRO to discuss the AG2050 initiative. From farms equipped with digital farming and precision agriculture technologies to systems that provide real-time data optimising everything from soil health to water use, AG2050 envisions a sustainable and technologically adva...

In this market update episode of the Feed Central Hay Matters Podcast, host Jon Paul Driver and Dave Clothier discuss the Australian hay market as the harvest season winds down. They cover how recent weather has impacted hay quality, with a mix of grades now available, and look at the impact on yields in regions like South Australia and Western Victoria. With high demand from the beef sector, and...

In the latest episode of the Feed Central Hay Matters podcast, our host, Jon Paul Driver, caught up with Dr. Andrew Walter for a deep dive into agricultural research and innovation. Dr. Walter has extensive experience across government, business, and academia, which has positioned him to lead projects that are reshaping hay production in Australia. His role has included leading the development of...

For the second part of the Feed Central Hay Matters Hay Innovators series, Jon Paul Driver caught up Damon Humphris of Taggr and Gavin Leersen of BaleTime at the recent AFIA Conference. This episode dives into the solutions both innovators have developed to tackle age-old challenges in hay production. Discover how Damon's journey led to the creation of an automated tagging system for hay bales, si...

In the first of our two-part Hay Innovators series on the Feed Central Hay Matters Podcast, Jon Paul Driver sits down with Louis Kelly, Chairman of the Australian Fodder Industry Association ( AFIA ), and Bryce Riddell, the creator of HayShepherd , a groundbreaking system for monitoring hay sheds. The conversation covers critical developments from the AFIA conference, new technologies transforming...

Jon Paul Driver catches up with National Sales Manager Dave Clothier for a hay market report and an indepth discussion on the current status of the national hay market ahead of new season. While Southern Queensland has seen good early-season hay production, and early harvesting in New South Wales promises high yields, dry conditions in South Australia and Western Victoria are expected to lead to l...

In this episode of the Hay Matters podcast, Jon Paul Driver talks with Dr. Louise Brown, CEO and founder of Hydgene Renewables. They dive into how hay and fodder are being turned into green hydrogen, revolutionising the way farmers can produce and use ammonia for fertilisers. Louise discusses her shift from academic research to spearheading this innovative startup, focusing on the practical benefi...

In this episode, Jon Paul Driver talks with Thommo, a hay industry veteran who began carting hay for over 62 years ago. Thommo discusses his early days of manual hay baling, his role as a founding member of the Australian Fodder Industry Association, and the technological changes he's witnessed and embraced in his long career. He also shares insights from his international travels and the strong n...

Tim Ford, Director : While there has been recent rain, many areas continue to experience a "green drought" with slow grass growth, particularly in the intensive grazing and dairy regions of Southern Victoria and South Australia. Despite some growth stimulated by summer rain, a dry autumn and delayed onset of winter have led to significant feed gaps and strong demand for hay, which has shifted indu...

Episode Highlights: Equi-Analytical was launched in June 2004 in response to the equine industry's need for specialised hay and pasture testing. Known for its robust NIR technology calibrations, Equi-Analytical licenses these globally. Equi-Analytical's launch in Australia will benefit the local equine market by reducing testing turnaround times for some services. Hay might be tested for many reas...

This week on the podcast, Jon Paul Driver sits down with Shaun Hann, the Manager at Toowoomba Hay Farm, to discuss his firsthand experiences after one of their storage facilities was declared to be in a fire ant zone. Shaun shares how this unexpected challenge has impacted their operations, the new regulations they are navigating, and the practical steps they are taking to remain fire ant free and...

Episode Highlights: Recent rainfall across the eastern seaboard has had minimal impact on reducing fodder demand. The EOFY is influencing decision making. Some growers are choosing to defer payments and buyers are deciding between filling on-farm storage now or in the new financial year. Demand is high and driven from the south, spreading into the north; all grades are selling well which bodes wel...

Episode Highlights: There are concerns about potential oversupply in both Australia and the US. Natural events like droughts and floods regulate this supply to some extent. However, there is a limit to how much the market, especially in Asia, can absorb. There is a severe supermarket duopoly in Australia which is currently a major topic at the federal government level. This market dominance is not...

Episode Highlights: Each export company in Australia has its own procurement matrix, lacking a single industry standard. R&D priority is shifting to focus more deliberately on the animal performance contribution value. There are ironies in the industry: breeding for some desired stem sizes can be counterproductive for animal performance, even when buyers are accustomed to a those sizes, for ex...

Podcast This week, Jon Paul Driver is joined by Pat Guerin in a special two part episode to discuss some of the many opportunities in the Australian hay industry. The discussion covers the need for industry-wide standards, a shifting R&D focus towards animal performance, and tackling challenges like weather damage and drying processes. It also highlights the importance of collaborative growth...