playnext.fm

Country Today · ACE Radio

Country Today - February 27th

February 27, 2026·25 min·2 clips
Australia's milk production has fallen from 11 billion to 8 billion litres, but fewer cows are now yielding more.
Country Today opens with falling milk output. Libby Price puts the dairy story in the context of a long drop, from about 11 billion litres to just over 8 billion litres a year. The herd is smaller. Mark Bennett joins as Libby notes that the decline is not all bad news: fewer cows, but better productivity. Property gets a sharper look too. Rural sales are described as falling to a record low over the past 12 months, while values hit a new peak per hectare. The field focus then moves north, with native positive farming coming through the annual Wilmot Field Day in the northern rivers of New South Wales. Dairy Australia gets a mention as well, with its new strategic plan. The soil segment is the most practical part. A guest describes returning to the farm in 2006, making changes by 2008, and seeing soil conditions respond over the following years. None of it sounds instant. Shovel work, lab tests, tissue tests, sap analysis, and foliar nutrition become the toolkit. Disease symptoms shift too, with patches of rhizoctonia, net blotch, and scald becoming less visible as soil conditions and management change. Research stays close to the paddock, through carbon work, insect management, and independent trials. Wool ends on firmer ground. Andrew Partridge reports the EMI closing higher, several indicators near long-term highs, and next week's offering back at 38,000 bales. The episode stays measured, always circling back to what is changing and what producers can act on now.

As heard by us

Dairy, land, wool, and farm practice get a tight read on Australian agriculture.

Australia's farm sector comes through as under pressure, and the piece keeps the focus on the numbers. Milk production is still falling, the milking herd is expected to drop about 2% over the next 12 months, and rural property sales have hit a record low even as values reached a…

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

Track a broad rural roundup: milk output is easing, wool is firmer, and property values are at record highs.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →
Listen to the show on
Apple PodcastsSpotify
Play clips from this episodeMore from Country Today