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Tuesday, 31 July 2007 More than 200 rice growers and agribusiness leaders will meet in Barooga this Friday (3 August) to discuss key issues facing the industry. Journalists are invited to attend the 2007 Hutcheon A&G Group - John Deere RGA Annual Conference and interview RGA President Laurie Arthur and the key note speakers detailed below. Pre-records can also be arranged. Professor Julian Cribb – Feeding the world of 2050 An Adjunct Professor in Science Communication at Sydney’s University of Technology, Professor Cribb recently commented that for the first time in history, urban water demand is outpacing farm demand globally. By 2050, he expects cities will consume half the world’s fresh water - reducing the water available for food production by one third. By 2025, water scarcity may cause an annual reduction of 350 million tonnes of food - almost the same as losing today’s entire global rice harvest or US grain crop. Professor Cribb’s address will challenge growers’ thinking on food security issues and look at the rice industry’s role in the looming global food shortage. Michael Whitehead – Challenges for the US Rice Sector: Implications for Australia Michael is the Vice President, Food & Agribusiness Research, of Rabobank based in New York. Michael will analyse the global competitiveness of the US rice industry and discuss the current challenges facing rice producers, including GM contamination, competition from other crops and the potential changes in the 2007 Farm Bill. His presentation will look at the implications for Australian rice producers, as co-competitors in a global marketplace. Mary Boydell – Using Raised Beds on Rice Farms (Innovative Cropping Systems) Mary is the Chairperson of the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC) and will launch the organisation’s latest research report at conference. Her presentation will detail the results of research around crop performance in a side by side comparison of irrigation layouts and systems. Significantly, researchers found that layouts can be modified to allow for a close rotation of rice and other crops, without the need to change irrigation layouts to satisfy the different crop needs. The raised-bed irrigation layouts have the potential for growers to increase the crop range and yield of crops in rotation with rice, like chickpeas, faba beans, soybeans, canola, wheat and barley. David Keldie - SunRice Consumer Markets Around the World David is the General Manager, Consumer Markets, at SunRice and has 20 years experience in FMCG business management. He will present an overview of SunRice consumer markets around the world; highlighting the brands and their performance in each region by size and scale. David will also outline SunRice’s future plans, as well as its challenges. The 2007 Hutcheon A&G Group - John Deere RGA Annual Conference will be held at the Cobram-Barooga Golf Club on Friday, 3 August 2007 from 9.30am – 5.30pm. For information on session times or to book interviews, please contact Victoria Taylor on (02) 6953 0433 or 0417 466 234. CONTACT |
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