Without doubt the world statistical stock situation would indicate that there is an enormous Imbalance between the supply/ demand situation for cotton, which on the f ace of it will last for some years yet. Nevertheless whilst this may be the case for cottons suitable for course count yarns it certainly is not the pos1t1on for cottons suitable for medium count yarns.

Although cotton has been grown in Australia for over one hundred years, mainly in Queensland prior to the early 1960's, it was not until 1963/1964 following the completion of the Keepit Dam and the introduction of the Raw Cotton Bounty Act (1964) that production started 1n New South Wales. It is worth remembering that the Bounty Act was brought in by the Federal Government to encourage cotton production for use by the local textile industry, in order to save much needed foreign exchange. The Bounty Act was one of the most successful schemes ever introduced by the Federal Government and by the late sixties some small quantities were produced surplus to domestic needs leading to the first exports of Australian cotton on the overseas market. The Bounty Scheme was subsequently phased out in 1971.

The following paper outlines the Bureau's latest outlook for the Australian cotton industry as recently published in the Quarterly Review of Rural Economy Vol . 8, No. 3 August 1986. Further discussion on the background and effects of the US farm bill and the medium term outlook for cotton will be presented at the Conference . This discussion will be based on this paper

The P2D project involves all Rural Research and Development Corporations, and is focused on three main aims:

• Facilitating the development of digital technology in Australian agriculture.

• Fostering the establishment of appropriate legal frameworks, data systems and access to critical datasets.

• Identifying the data communications systems required to deliver the benefits of digital agriculture to the Australia farm and agribusiness sectors.

Additional socialisation of project findings is required with international stakeholders to increase international awareness on next steps for stakeholder engagement and investment for digital agriculture in Australia.

Currently, the legal and regulatory frameworks around agricultural data are immature. Around the world, many groups are grappling with how best to manage agricultural data and what best practice would look like for the governance of agricultural data which would enable producers to capture the value of their data and for agricultural industries to foster and support digital innovation. The aim of this international travel exchange was to disseminate the research findings of the Legal Dimensions of Digital Agriculture research funded as part of the P2D project as well as provide the opportunity to network and collaborate with researchers working on the agricultural data governance internationally. Interestingly, Australia was shown to be leading the discussion on agricultural data governance in the international context.This Travel Exchange projectS RRDP1809 and 1810 achieved the aims and objectives as the contacts made in both Berlin and Montreal has already fostered some potential international collaboration with the international agricultural research community which will benefit Australian agricultural industries. From researchers presentations at Interest Group Agricultural Data, I was approached by the FAO, to join and lead 1 day of a 5-day international E-Consultation of ethical, legal and policy aspects of open data affecting farmers (from 4-8th June 2018) and to join in an International Working Party on the Legal, Policy and Ethical Aspects of Data for Farmers. This provided the opportunity to showcase the work that was being done in Australia and to connect with organisations who are also grappling with similar issues. Collaboration with Canadian research institutions was also fostered through conference presentations. This provides an important network to draw upon as Australia seriously considers the best way to guide Agricultural data policy and practice.

Like most other major manufacturing industries, cotton spinners in the western world have been constantly pressured by heavy competition from low wage costs countries. That constant pressure to reduce overall production costs has been the major catalyst in the development of the industry

Due to the economic pressure being placed on the cotton fibre by increased use of man-made fibres, the revolution in textile processing technology and the current world surplus, research on the quality and value of cotton has become even more important in recent times. Experts, including breeders and producers, spinners, merchants and manufacturers, who see the marketing challenge in every phase of cotton handling, are calling for changes in the system that evolved in an age before the advanced technology of today was realised.

This is the final report for project DAN168C. This project ceased after 1 year of operation. Mark Hickman was the , however Mark moved into the position of IPM training coordinator with the department of primary industries, based at Toowoomba. Hence why this final report outlines some objectives being achieved.

While Mark was the IDO for the Upper Namoi it provided a mechanism for the Upper Namoi Cotton Grower Association to identify research and extension needs at both a local and national level. The IDO, is responsible for conducting farm demonstrations to improve the adoption new technology and management practices by local cotton growers.

The IDO position had a continued focus on the area of integrated pest management (IPM) and area wide insect management (AWM). Growers groups improve the level of communication between neighbours and consultants and this has facilitated a reduction in the use of pesticides by growers in a regional by providing increased confidence.

Mark was able to document a significant level of trigagramma activity in the sorghum crops of the Upper Namoi. He was able to foster and further develop the confidence in IPM through his involvement with the local area wide Harparay group.

In addition to the local Upper Namoi commitments Mark was the CRC Extension Team Leader for the Farming System focus group. While in that capacity Mark help develop and deliver a series of information workshops on limited water strategies in irrigated cotton. This was a successful; the workshop that featured in seven production valleys and a total of 150 attending growers.

Special project: Nitrogen Management and minimum tillage

This project aimed at clarifying the degree to which nitrogen is lost in cotton production due to leaching of nitrate beyond the root zone. This involved assessing losses under different soil types and stubble management practices. Recent research has highlighted a disturbing picture with significant nitrate leaching occurring the minimal tillage systems. Leaching associated with conventionally and minimal tillage (standing stubble) systems were compared. In addition, an assessment of nitrogen loss under a ‘once off’ or ‘split application’ was also assessed.

This project followed on from the proposal CSP98C ‘Development and field testing of micro-computer cotton management packages’ which aimed to support the development of CottonLOGIC and other computerised decision support systems (DSS); validate them in the field; and to provide training and support. It also complemented another project funded by the CRDC CSP106C ‘Enhancing development, support and evaluation of computerised decision support’ which aimed to provide additional programming and support capabilities and to evaluate the impact and nature of use of computerised decision support in the Australian Cotton Industry

Cotton growers are facing increasing pressures to manage resources more cost effectively and to be more accountable for the impact that their decisions make on the surrounding environment. Computer based decision support systems have been developed to provide cotton growers with the best information available from research to assist with their management decision making. CottonLOGIC is now available to assist growers and their advisers in pest management; crop nutrition; insect species identification; plant mapping; growth regulation; spray ordering and notification; and management of INGARD® cotton. Underlying these functions is a powerful database for storing crop management information and an end of season report generator.

At the start of this project the number of registered copies distributed to the industry had risen to over 900. CottonLOGIC had also become an industry benchmark for pest management and was recommended in the industry’s Best Management Practice guidelines. In addition to this the software had gained significant recognition for its quality and usefulness by winning prestigious awards for excellence in Australian agriculture software and technology transfer in the IT industry. This proposal was to build on the success of CottonLOGIC and develop new decision tools to meet the current and future needs of the industry.

The renewed interest in non-irrigated cotton production in recent years led us to undertake co-operative cultivar trials, commencing in 1981/82. There were considerable differences in opinion on the types of cultivars required with much media speculation about the desirability of Texan short season types. Yet , as reported at the Goondiwindi and Toowoomba grower conferences , our preliminary results suggested full season varieties did better under Australian conditions.

The short season cotton breeding program at Narrabri is continuing to make good progress in developing early maturing cultivars adapted to Australian conditions.