Dear Northern Grower Group member,
Please follow the link to a survey for your completion which, by doing so, will include you in a Water Use Efficiency (WUE) project that the Mingenew-Irwin, Liebe and North East farming Futures Groups are all involved in. This project is funded by the GRDC and is being delivered through CSIRO. It is focused on improving crop water use efficiency as a means of increasing farm profitability.
One component of the project which is being carried out by Planfarm, Curtin University and the local grower groups is exploring the impact of non agronomic factors on water use efficiency. For example what is the impact of seeding capacity, farm debt and labour on the ability to extract the best crop yield possible in any given season?
The theory being that there are factors other than agronomic ones (i.e. time of sowing, fertilizer rate, soil management, etc) which also impact on WUE and therefore farm profit.
To tease out this theory we need to collect a variety of management, production and rainfall information over a range of seasons from as many participants as possible. Completion of the enclosed survey will provide this for the first year of interest - 2008.
The data collected will be analysed by Peter Tozer of Curtin University to determine if there is any correlation between the various management factors of interest and WUE.
Presentation of data collated will only be in the form of group averages, top 25%, bottom 25%, etc. No individual will be identifiable via the presented data!
What's in it for you?
As well as helping establish which non agronomic factors impact on water use efficiency you will be presented with data gathered from all participants (expected to be in the order of 100 farm businesses) in the form of a ‘Farm Business / Management Survey'.
Such benchmarking surveys are powerful tools which can help you identify strengths and weaknesses in your business. Planfarm puts together the single largest Farm Business Survey (supported by Bankwest these days) and as such is well positioned to deliver a useful product for participants.
Specifically you will be provided with an analysis of the information collected allowing you to compare yourselves in the various areas analysed.
If you have any questions on the project, the methodology or the information you need to provide please don't hesitate to call Rachel Bagshaw of MIG or Cameron Weeks at Planfarm.
Regards
Rachel Bagshaw Cameron Weeks
Mingenew-Irwin Group Planfarm
9928 1645 9964 1170
Complete the Farm Management Survey