Australian farmers curious about potentially diversifying into hemp are invited to attend field days across Australia early next year.
AgriFutures Australia is a Research and Development Corporation (RDC) that services related needs of Australian rural industries. Among its functions are driving the growth and development of emerging, high-potential agricultural rural industries – such as industrial hemp – through targeted research.
AgriFutures Australia national Industrial Hemp Variety Trial (IHVT) aims to provide growers with independent information about the performance of varieties suited to specific geographic locations within Australia. Usually industrial hemp is grown for grain or fibre purposes, but the focus of the IHVT is on dual purpose crops. There are nine sites across the country that make up the IHVT program and more than 10 different varieties of hemp are being evaluated.
Field days will be held at three of the sites in Victoria and South Australia in January and February 2024; providing opportunity for growers, agronomists and others interested in hemp to learn about requirements of the crops, yields and varietal selection. The first will be held in Hamilton, Victoria on 30 January, followed by Maaoupe South Australia on 31 January and in Loxton, also in SA, on 2 February. There will also be events in Queensland, New South Wales, Tasmania, Western Australia and the Northern Territory between February and late June.
“Field day visitors will be able to see how the trial crop is growing, and the differences between the varieties and sowing times ahead of harvest,” said IHVT national coordinator, Mark Skewes. “There will also be an optional agronomy training workshop at each of the field days, hosted by AgriFutures IHVT agronomist John Muir.”
Further information on field day times, locations and event registration can be found here.
After the IHVT program, AgriFutures Australia is funding a $2.5 million Industrial Hemp Program of Research to assist with the growth of the industry. And it could be a lucrative one.
“The global industrial hemp market is projected to reach $18.6 billion by 2027,” said AgriFutures Australia Emerging Industries Program Senior Manager, Dr Olivia Reynolds. “This is a huge opportunity for Australian agriculture to produce an environmentally sustainable, multi-purpose crop that can be used for everything from food to building materials.”
