Cost of the frost hits tens of millions for cropping farmers

As farmers battle with crop losses from the frost one grower has shared “it’s the brutality of it all to think that the crops looked so good”.

Tens of millions of dollars has been wiped from the Australian grains industry as farmers count the cost of cruel spring frosts.

While the full extent of the damage won’t be known until harvest, rain predicted for large areas of southeast Australia this week could salvage at least some returns from the huge investment made in growing this year’s crop.

MarketCheck chief executive Nick Crundall said the biggest losses could be expected in areas where crops had been looking good, such as Rankin Springs, Condobolin and Henty in NSW.

“I drove about 2000km looking at frosted crops and in some of the worst affected areas, losses will be compounded by the fact that they were looking so good and growers had thrown everything at them in terms of inputs,” Mr Crundall said.

“As an average, I would put losses of 10-20 per cent of crops affected by frost, and it’s the brutality of it all to think that the crops looked so good.

“You would have to think those losses would run into tens of million of dollars.”

Frost damage has varied not only from district to district but between neighbours and even within paddocks according to Grains Research and Development Corporation southern panel chairman Andrew Russell.

Mr Russell said topography usually had a role to play in frost damage in crops, but this year had been different “with no rhyme or reason”.

On his own country near Rutherglen in northern Victoria, Mr Russell said some paddocks had sustained losses of at least 20 per cent but it was impossible to know how this would affect yield.

Frosted crops. Generic. Picture: Kelly Angel, BCG

The crops were also suffering from moisture stress and potentially heat damage and he said it was sometimes difficult to determine what damage was caused by.

And he said the frost could ironically help in some cases, where crops had big potential yields but no moisture to fill them, and the frost meant less grains would need to be filled.

While some of those faced with damaged crops were cutting them for hay, Mr Russell said there was not a clear-cut decision either.

“I’ve got a neighbour who was cutting canola and as he got into it, he called his agronomist because the canola was looking better than he thought,” he said.

“Some growers are doing two or three rounds of the paddock, and it can be useful to tidy up resistant ryegrass but also to see what volume is there in case they go down the hay path.

“What I can say is that I have never been so unsure or found it so hard to form an opinion on how the crops will end up.”

Grain Producers Australia interim chief executive Pete Arkle said frost losses could potentially run into tens of millions of dollars in lost income.

GPA has not collated industry-wide information on frost crop losses to date.

“We have been watching social media and getting feedback and while some areas thought they would be OK, it’s not the case,” Mr Arkle said.

“Those who were frosted and have had to cut crops for hay will have a fair bit of lost margin from the enterprise.”