Farmers can expect one of the best years of production in two decades, according to the Reserve Bank of Australia.
Despite flooding and crop damage in the east, the RBA says agricultural production will grow by 10 per cent.
In its report titled “Trends in Farms Sector Output and Exports”, the Reserve Bank notes the breaking of the drought in Australia’s east will see solid growth in farm output this financial year.
The RBA is predicting the 10 per cent growth despite drought in Western Australia, floods in eastern Australia, and the ongoing threat of locust damage to crops.
Mick Keogh of the Australian Farm Institute says the forecast is encouraging.
“It’s picking up on the sort of demand trends we’re seeing out of Asia which of course is Australian agriculture’s main market at the moment,” he says.
The RBA says the long term trend away from livestock in favour of cropping will speed the recovery from drought.