Where will our grain go?

GrainCorp’s closure of 72 sites across NSW, includes eight in the Warrumbungle LGA.

Only Baradine silo will receive grain, operating only as a “flex” site, taking overflow capacity from other Central West silos.

Silos at Binnaway, Mendooran, Neilrex, Ulamambri, Weetaliba, Dunedoo, Gwabegar and Bugaldie have been shut indefinitely.

The nearest site remaining open will be at Gilgandra, 40 kilometres from Warrumbungle shire’s western boundary.

It will be upgraded to a “primary” export-focused site, while to the east the Premer site on the Liverpool Plains will also be upgraded to take extra deliveries from afar.

Warrumbungle Shire Council general manager Steve Loane, said the council had not been consulted by GrainCorp about the closures and the area manager finished up this month leaving his sites closed.

“My concern is that they probably won’t ever reopen, even privately,” Mr Loane said.

“We don’t know the asbestos status (of the silo sites) or their pesticide residue status – things council would like to know about.”

Warrumbungle LGA encompasses more than 1.2 million hectares of land, from Baradine and Coonabarabran in the north, to Coolah and Dunedoo in the south.

Almost 100,000 hectares of that is dedicated to dryland cereal cropping, while agriculture accounts for more than 775,000ha in total.

At Coolah, Haynes Farm and Hardware agronomist Ed Blackburn, whose family grows cereal crops near Mendooran, said there wouldn’t be a silo site left open on the Golden Highway east of Gilgandra.

“The farm is only 14km from Mendooran so we’d take six or seven truckloads in one day, but now we have to go to Gilgandra and probably stay the night waiting in a queue, and still only get three truck loads turned around in a day.”

Mendooran farmers Mark Yeo, “Glenshea” and Phil Lindeman, manager of “Yarragrin”, were also disappointed and anxious about their harvest delivery and marketing options as they contemplated freight distances at least 50km further to Gilgandra.