While arable growers have a good handle on in-paddock crop gross margins, many don’t account for their overhead costs like rates and insurance. In this episode of Cut the Crop, Leeston arable farmer David Birkett test drives a new FAR overhead costs spreadsheet.

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As well as managing established pests and weeds, like Fall armyworm and velvetleaf, the arable industry, in conjunction with Biosecurity NZ, remains vigilant about keeping out other unwanted imports. In this episode of Cut the Crop, FAR’s biosecurity officer Ash Mills talks about the threat from yellow-legged hornet, Brown Marmorated Stink Bug and others.

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Getting the most up-to-date research information out to growers is a key part of FAR’s role. In this episode of Cut the Crop, FAR’s Communications Manager Anna Heslop talks about the latest and easiest way to search FAR’s extensive research database, using the new Ask FAR AI App.

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Growers participating in the combine workshops and follow-up in-field visits last season saved about $115 a hectare, says organiser, FAR technology manager Chris Smith. In this episode of Cut the Crop, he says it is worth attending the latest round of workshops in early December even if growers have been before.

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FAR’s big annual event at its Chertsey research site is on November 26. In this episode of Cut the Crop, FAR’s Communications Manager Anna Heslop says that as well as having a diverse range of topics and speakers, ARIA is a great chance to catch up with others before the busy harvest season.

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Momentum is building for the NZ Grown Grains logo following its launch in Auckland. In this episode of Cut the Crop, FAR’s Ivan Lawrie, a driving force behind the campaign, says the level of interest has been much bigger than expected.

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Land and Water Science director and principal scientist Dr Clint Rissmann is one of the creators of Landscape DNA, an interactive, online mapping tool which provides a new approach to water quality modelling. In this episode of Cut the Crop, he tells Scott Champion that what’s underneath our feet can cause variations in water quality between neighbouring farms and even paddocks.

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Some FAR trials and projects involve taking risks with new management practices and technology, so farmers can be armed with plenty of data before taking the leap themselves. In this episode of Cut the Crop, Owen Gibson talks about the Future Farms demonstration, while Jo Drummond discusses rationalising pesticide applications through the A Lighter Touch multi-sector project.

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Nitrogen is a key input to achieving optimum crop yields, but how much can growers source from the soil? In this episode of Cut the Crop, FAR senior environment researcher Abie Horrocks says that by testing and calculating their soil’s available N supply, growers can reduce their fertiliser spend.

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Leaft Foods is a Canterbury-based start-up focused on extracting a special protein called Rubisco from the green leaves of plants. In this episode of Cut the Crop, Maury Leyland Penno and Monica Schwass of Leaft Foods say that while Rubisco is in every green leaf, they have selected to grow lucerne for its production and environmental attributes.

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