Boom tomato crop backfires
THREE anti- Adani campaigners have been let off with two- month good behaviour bonds after being arrested for protesting at the mining giant’s Townsville headquarters.
John Alistair Ross, of Coffs Harbour, and Joel Rosenzweig and Garry Kelly, both of Sydney, all faced Townsville Magistrates Court yesterday over a protest last month. They were each given a twomonth good behaviour bond, with no convictions recorded. If they breach their bonds, they face a fine of $ 100. Speaking outside court, Kelly said it was a good result. “The reason we came up and did what we did was for the locals here, to give them a national voice,” Kelly said.
Two more protesters are expected to face Townsville Magistrates Court on November 12. AUSTRALIANS are being warned not to become complacent about this summer’s bushfire risk despite a slight increase in the chance of La Nina- driven downpours arriving over large parts of Australia.
Scientists at the Bureau of Meteorology have put themselves on La Nina watch after noticing the emergence of some precursors recently, which have increased the odds of one developing to 50 per cent, which is double the normal risk.
La Nina occurs when waters in the tropical Pacific Ocean cool and push warmer water towards Australia, bringing cloud and above- average rainfall. The last one stretched from 2010 and into 2012 and marked Australia’s wettest two years on record. But bureau climate prediction services manager Andrew Watkins says if one develops this year, it’s likely to be weak and short- lived. UNPROFITABLE: Julie Inch has been forced to leave tomatoes on the vine because it is not worth picking them. TOMATO farmers are feeling the pinch as rock- bottom prices bite into earnings, raising speculation that some growers might not be able to afford to plant a crop next year.
Prices at $ 10 a box and even lower are below the cost of production.
Growers, fed up with sending tomatoes to southern markets at giveaway prices, are instead using them to fatten cattle.
As far as Carl Walker, president of the BowenGumlu Growers Association is concerned, the never- ending boom or bust cycle in the horticultural industry has to end. It has been a bad year, especially for tomato and capsicum growers.
“It has been a shocking year,” Mr Walker said.
“We had a dry, warm winter which made growing conditions in southern regions exceptionally good. Southern growers increased their plantings after Cyclone Debbie in March because they thought the North was wiped out and they would make a windfall.”
He said it did not pan out that way because Bowen growers were back in the game and planting crops only a few days after Debbie. He said both growing regions ended up with bumper crops.
“The whole industry has to realise that weather does not affect us the way it used to,” he said.
“Ten years ago, would have stopped Debbie us for three or four weeks, but not any more. With new technology and greater knowledge, we were back planting within seven days after Debbie.”
With southern regions at peak production because of favourable climatic conditions and the Bowen- Gumlu districts hardly even stumbling after the impact of Cyclone Debbie, tomatoes and capsicums went into overproduction.
The market went into free fall as prices plummeted to $ 2 a kg for tomatoes in shops.
That meant growers like Jim and Julie Inch were doing it tough.
Yesterday, Mrs Inch was in the packing shed boxing tomatoes for the Sydney market.
She was hoping there would be a change and that the market would lift by the time the produce arrived in Sydney. Behind her on dying vines were tonnes of ripe tomatoes left behind.
“The prices have been so bad we couldn’t pick them all,” she said.
“We are just hoping the price jumps in the next three weeks and that the fruit we have left that is still coming on will get us a good price,” she said.
Mr Walker said the year had been so bad some growers would have trouble finding the capital to cover planting costs next year. He said that sending produce away below production could cost farmers $ 50,000 a week.
“Farmers should remember that for as long as they keep sending product away to an oversupplied market, prices will stay down. If you are selling at $ 10 a box, you are selling below the cost of production,” he said.