Barry Large replaces Andrew Weidemann as chair of Grain Producers Australia

The new chairman of Grain Producers Australia, Barry Large, tells The Weekly Times about his plans for the peak body.

Barry Large has taken the reins at Grain Producers Australia, after Andrew Weidemann stepped down this week. Picture: COLIN MURTY

West Australian wheat and sheep farmer Barry Large says it will be “business as usual” at Grain Producers Australia after taking over the group’s leadership yesterday.

Mr Large, who grows 6500 hectares of grain crops and runs 9000 sheep on the family property at Miling in WA’s northern wheatbelt, was elected GPA chairman at a board meeting after its annual general meeting.

He has served as Andrew Weidemann’s deputy for the past eight years.

Mr Weidemann stood down as GPA chair after suffering a health scare last year but will remain on the board as its research and development spokesman and in charge of special projects.

Along with inaugural GPA chairman Pete Mailler, Mr Large and Mr Weidemann were responsible for setting up the grower body in 2004 out of the ashes of the Grains Council of Australia.

Mr Large said they all had the same core values but different strengths in the grain industry.

“Biosecurity is my strength, while Andrew’s was R & D (research and development),” he said.

“While Andrew will not be in the chair, he will still have a strong influence on GPA.

“But it was be business as usual.

“We will keep trying to represent growers for equitable outcomes.”

Mr Large is chairman of the Grains Industry Market Access Forum and was vice-chairman of PGA Grains in WA a number of years ago.

He sees the biggest challenges for the industry as maintaining profits to growers and the establishment of Grains Australia.

“Grains Australia will be exciting. We’re getting everything in house,” he said.

Elections for three board positions on GPA at the AGM yesterday saw NSW Farmers grains committee chairman Matthew Madden replace Queensland grain grower Luke Arbuckle as a board member.

That is likely to cause a change on NSW Farmers’ grains committee.

Another Queenslander Andrew Earle was re-elected to the board and later elected as deputy chairman.

West Australian board member Gerard Paganoni was re-elected unopposed.

Mr Weidemann told The Weekly Times his greatest achievement in his eight years at the helm of GPA was bring the grain industry together.

“We have got all the state farming organisations sitting around the table,” he said.

Mr Weidemann said the other big achievement was developing the database of levy payers of the Grains Research and Development Corporation.

“That gave growers a vote on their R & D (research and development),” he said

“ It took a while to get Government to understand it and the board of GRDC to understand it.

“It was important that GRDC recognise where their income comes from and that researchers understand that growers are funding their work.”

Mr Weidemann said his biggest disappointment was not being able to convert the GRDC into a grower-owned company.

Viterra executive Lyndon Asser thanked Mr Weidemann for his “significant contribution” to the grains industry work on behalf of the Australian Grain Exporters Council and Grains Trade Australia.

“If there were four words that describe you, Andrew, they are forthright, open, engaging and passionate,” Mr Asser said.