Image: oat field in regional NSW.

Australian farmers are looking forward to another bumper crop year; after battling through years of drought, farmers are rewarded with a second-year bumper harvest. It is good news for Australian farmers as they begin a second season with an expected plentiful harvest.

Australian winter crop production in 2021–22 is forecast to be well above average. Winter crop yields are more than 20% above 10-year averages to 2020–21 in New South Wales, Western Australia and Queensland and around 10% higher in Victoria and South Australia (ABARES). 

At the same time, farmers are struggling with labour shortages. An increase in their supply tends to lower their prices. The lower price does not increase the demand due to economic recession caused by pandemic lockdowns and trade tariffs. 

While some countries experience an oversupply of food, at least 155 million people in 55 countries faced acute hunger in 2020 — 20 million more than 2019, according to figures from the 2021 Global Report on Food Crises. 

The need of the hour is not only to create trade solutions but also to manage the humanitarian crisis by addressing the global hunger needs. BREAD AUSTRALIA has launched a new project called ‘Gleanings for the Hungry’. Our vision for this initiative is to partner with Australian farmers to collect their surplus harvest and export it to food-insecure countries.