Report on extension activities for project ‘High-output forage systems for meeting beef markets – Phase 2’.

Abstract

This report provides the details of all extension and communication activities conducted during the life of project B.NBP.0636, ‘High-output forage systems for meeting beef markets – Phase 2’. The project examined the relative production and profitability of key alternative forage options for backgrounding or finishing cattle in the Fitzroy River catchment of Queensland. The results provided a better understanding of the expected forage, animal and economic performance from key forage options under commercial management conditions.
The applied, multidisciplinary nature of the project resulted in many recommendations for beef producers. Extension products were developed to support informed decision making with regard to forage use. These included a producer guide to forage use, ‘Feeding Forages in the Fitzroy’, and gross margin spreadsheets for forages grown in three sub-regions of the Fitzroy River catchment. Significant interest from beef producers in the project results, and requests for further information sessions, resulted in an extension of the project, and carryover of nominal funds, to allow additional extension activities to occur. The objective of these extension activities was to support adoption of practices which will result in optimal productivity and profitability of high output forage systems for beef producers in northern Australia.