Grain surplus leads to drop in sorghum

According to the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resources Economics and Sciences (ABARES) Australian Crop Report released in late December, the area of summer sorghum crops planted has fallen nearly 30 per cent on last season, a stark contrast to the 15 per cent increase across all summer crops.

Growers are being drawn away from sorghum and towards cotton with strong prices for the latter and good sub-soil moisture, along with six-year highs in winter crops harvested, contributing to the change.

AWB portfolio manager Charlie Brown believes that a distinct lack of demand has also contributed to the reduction in sorghum crops.

“After the record harvest, there is a lot of Australian Standard White (ASW) and lower grade wheat around,” Mr Brown said.

“Combined with a drop in demand for wheat and barley out of China and Japan, there is more than enough grain to cover the reduction of sorghum.

“Most lot feeders who have used sorghum in the past will quite happily switch to wheat or barley, especially given the current low prices after such a big harvest.

“With that in mind, the reduction of sorghum around is highly unlikely to affect the prices of wheat and barley.

“The increase in overall summer crop size can be attributed to the confidence growers have in cotton and rice from the rainfall received in 2016.

“Most areas had more rain last year than they have had for many years.

“Strong prices and good sub-soil moisture have made gambling on larger cotton crops more worthwhile.

“Some cotton growers have sewn their usual irrigated paddocks as well as some extra non-irrigated ones.

“Current moisture levels have made that possible.

“Other areas, like Walgett, have not had rain for the past four years and therefore have not planted summer crops over that time. These areas now have moisture beneath the soil and have put in summer crops.”

The ABARES report has also predicted a 21 per cent rise in summer crop production to 4.6 million tonnes.