Agriculture in Australia: Exporting Wheat as a Major Revenue Source

This article discusses the wheat export industry in Australia, which is a major revenue source for the country. It provides an overview of the wheat farming process, the states that produce wheat, and the countries that import it. The article also highlights the challenges faced by the industry, such as unbalanced pricing and competition from other countries. It concludes with recommendations for the government to implement policies to ensure a stable market for wheat farming and exportation.

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AGRICUTURE IN AUSTRALIA
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The export market has proved to be a convenient bazaar for many countries in the world.
Australia is a good example of a country which has embraced the export market by selling its
products to foreign countries. An enormous number of laborers have been employed in the
agricultural sector thus making the country a major producer and exporter of agricultural
products. Statistics show that Australia mostly gets its revenue from agricultural business which
results in a more stable economy.
Wheat is a top agricultural export product from Australia. According to Australia Bureau
of Agriculture and Resource Economics and Science (ABARES), wheat produces an average of
12.5% of all other exported agricultural products in Australia (Yasin, 2015, p. 132). Wheat is
grown in both small-scale farms and large-scale farms thus making the product more adequate
thus boosting this product to be sold in the global market. Depicted below is an analytical study
of an agricultural product that is widely exported from Australia.
The diagram below helps us to visualize how wheat product in Australia has enormously
and actively been involved in the export market (Yasin, 2015, p. 162).
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(Yasin, 2015, p. 165)
As the above table portrays, wheat product is exported mainly from Australia where over
16 million tons were shipped in the year 2016. Wheat is a winter crop with sowing in autumn
and then harvested on summer and spring. Some of the primary states that produce wheat are;
New South Wales, Western Australia, north Australia, and Victoria.
Western Australia is essentially the major state that exports wheat overseas. Major
potential foreign markets for wheat include; Indonesia, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia and Sudan.
Australia produces approximately 50% wheat to the export market thus generating $2-3 billion
each year. The country is well known to produce high-quality white wheat that is mostly grown
in the Western Australia that produces bright white flour with high milling yield. As above
indicated Indonesia is the largest market of wheat from Western Australia since the quality of the
wheat is high (Malcolm, 2015, p. 143).

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(Montfort, 2013, p. 138)
Australian wheat quality normally has low discoloration, low content of moisture and
high bulk density. Some of the major milling grades produced in Australia are; Australian Hard
which is used for breads and contains about 12% of proteins, Australian Standard white (ASW),
that is used for steamed breads, flat breads extra, Australian Standard Noodle (ASN) which is
mostly exported to Japan to make Japanese noodles (Malcolm, 2015, p. 187).
The demand for wheat farming is tremendously displaying a strong growth in
international market. The high demand of Australian wheat export is boosting industrial revenue
in the country (Malcolm, 2015, p. 143). With the increasing industry demand for the product,
brings about high sale yard prices thus boosting the revenue growth in Australia. It is anticipated

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for revenue to grow by 2.0% that is making up to $16.7 billion within a timespan of two years
with the ongoing increasing sale yard prices.
(Montfort, 2013, p. 89)
From Australian wheat news, it was reported that the USDA experience high domestic
food price for wheat from Eastern Australia that contributed to wheat exportation from that
region to decrease and many export markets opted to export their wheat from Western Australia.
This has affected the regional economic stability and the rate at which government revenue was
coming from wheat exportation has drastically abridged (Kirkegaard , Christen , & Krupinsky,
2016, p. 195). The Western Australian region has gained an upper hand of exporting up to 90%
of its harvest in the international export market. As a result, 40% of Australian wheat is exported
from Western Australia thus creating economic catastrophe since there is unbalanced marketing
price of the commodity.

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Another newspaper article this time from the (Arkansas Democratic Gazette) indicated a
rise in wheat price. The newspaper stated that wheat being a weed that feeds the human race and
the fact that it is grown on a large land more than any other crop in the world, it is experiencing
price increment (Yasin, 2015, p. 87). After an analytical review of four straight white harvests,
the rate at which the price is increasing is alarming to the exporting markets. Kansas and Eastern
Australia are raising their wheat products making it difficult for exporters to look for other
alternative countries to buy cheap wheat (Kirkegaard , Christen , & Krupinsky, 2016, p. 189).
Recommendations to the Key Player
The government ought to come up with a policy to facilitate an active and stable market for
wheat farming and exportation. Some of the policies the government should implement are; the
government should demand a quality wheat product. A quality product attracts the buyer. Flour
millers not only export wheat from Australia because it generates for the entire world but they
are more concerned with the quality of the product (Montfort, 2013, p. 173). Thus the
government should foresee that the wheat farmers produce quality product to be exported.
Balance sheet policy is another effective way that the government should implement to
ensure that the pricing of the wheat is controlled. Some wheat producing states are increasing
their wheat cost which is resulting in some wheat exporter countries to withdraw. Although the
Western Australia region has tried to moderate their wheat pricing in the market, other states are
triggering major wheat exporters to look for alternative markets (Montfort, 2013, p. 182). The
Australian government should control the product pricing to mitigate cases of countries
withdrawing from the Australian wheat market (Wood , Lenzen , Dey , & Lundie, 2015, p. 315).

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Future prospect
It is anticipated that in future the growth of Australia government revenue will be
improved from wheat exportation if only the key plays implement policies to foresee and protect
the wheat industry. Despite Australia having majored in many agriculture practices, wheat
farming will remain as the most agricultural practice to export and consume its products. The
policy that the government will implement will safeguard both the wheat farmers and the export
industry for the product global wide. Wheat farming is enormously showing great development
in the export world thus in future wheat product in Australia will be a product that will be
providing government revenue at a higher rate (Brad 2018, para .2).
Conclusion
In conclusion the Australian government should implement the above mentioned policy
to eradicate the issue of unbalanced wheat pricing. Wheat farming has shown a tremendous
growth in the export market thus the key plays ought to look at the welfare of the farmers and
that also of the wheat buyers.

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Reference list
Einspruch. (2015). More than wheat. Port Melbourne: Barrie Publishers
Kirkegaard , J., Christen , O., & Krupinsky, J. (2016). Break crop benefits in temperate
wheat production. Field Crops Research, 107(2), 180-198.
Malcolm, L. R. (2015). Agriculture in Australia. South Melbourne: Oxford university .
Montfort, W. (2013). Agriculture products in Australia (2nd ed.). Datamnitor: University
of Western Australia.
Wood , R., Lenzen , M., Dey , C., & Lundie, S. (2015). A comparative study of some
environmental impacts of conventional and organic farming in Australia. Agricultural
systems, 89(2), 310-330.
Yasin, M. A. (2015). Economics of organic farming syatems and policy options in
Australia. Kansas: press.
BRAD C. 2018, "Idaho wheat acreage increase reflects farmers’ optimism on prices"
Capital press. April 10, 2018, viewed APRIL 22, 2018,
http://www.capitalpress.com/Idaho/20180410/idaho-wheat-acreage-increase-reflects-
farmers-optimism-on-prices