Avo farming growing into $100m industry

AVOCADOS are tipped to overtake bananas as the Tablelands’ most lucrative cash crop.

They are currently the region’s second-most-valuable industry, worth $83 million a year, compared to $91 million in 2015.

But Mareeba and District Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association president Joe Moro predicts that’s about to change.

“Avocados, in my opinion, will be the first $100 million industry on the Tablelands,” he said.

“With the amount of trees that have gone in, production will increase quite rapidly.

“The challenge for avo- cado farmers is maintaining profitability.”

The latest Tablelands agricultural profile shows the farm gate value of the sector grew by 30 per cent to more than $552 million from 2011-15.

Mr Moro believes future growth will hinge on water affordability.

“We’re looking forward to a business case being developed for Nullinga Dam and options for modernising the current scheme,” he said.

Over the past 40 years, Dennis Howe has built a farming empire with 600ha of bananas, 160ha of avocados, 600ha of sugarcane and 8ha of blueberries spread across Mareeba, with the biggest challenge keeping costs down.

“Avocados I think in an- other four years’ time will reach a challenging period, price wise,’’ he said.

“The holy grail at the moment would be to find a banana variety resistant to Panama disease Tropical Race 4 – that’s every farmer’s dream, not just in Australia but around the world.” Read Rural Insight in Wednesday’s Cairns Post