The New South Wales government has purchased two more pastoral properties in the state’s west to be converted into national parks, adding to the total of more than a dozen recent similar purchases. The 71,000 hectare properties, Tasman and Corinya, located around 800 kilometres west of Sydney, were purchased in partnership with The Nature Conservancy Australia. Read more at ABC Rural News.
The December issue of the Agriculture and Biosecurity Newsletter gives an interesting recap of the key research and extension activities of NT Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Livestock team in 2025. These projects include those looking at virtual fencing products, sustainable carrying capacity, the impact and management of Buffalo flies and more. Access the full article here.
The December issue of Landscape SA’s Across the Outback e-bulletin includes articles focussing on a range of topics including aerial goat control in the Flinders Ranges, exclusion fencing to protect Sugarwood/False Sandalwood (Myoporum playcarpum) and Bullock Bush (Electryon oleifolius) on the Willochra Plain and a summary of events held to celebrate 100 years of the TGB Osborn Vegetation Reserve at Koonamore Station. Access the latest issue here.
The ACCC (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) has recently launched a quad bike safety awareness campaign in regional Australia. Since 2011, 234 Australians have died in quad bike accidents with older male farmers and children at most risk of fatal injuries or crashes. Find out more about the campaign and what you can do to lessen the risk here.
According to Meat & Livestock Australia’s latest Top 10 trends of 2025 report, Australia’s red meat industry showed resilience, productivity gains and strong global demand in 2025 with record production, high prices and export performance forecast across beef, sheepmeat and goat sectors. MLA analysis shows Australia is on track to achieve record beef production of 20.79 million tonnes in 2025, produced from fewer cattle than previous peaks, highlighting long-term efficiency gains across genetics, feeding systems and on-farm productivity. Read more here.
Don’t forget that you can keep up to date with many rangelands research projects in northern Australia by reading the monthly FutureBeef eBulletin. The November issue includes articles on navigating the new Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) website, the new StationSmart project and Western Australia’s Biofuels strategy. You can find the latest issue here.
ABC Radio’s Country Hour, Australia’s longest-running radio program, celebrated its 80th anniversary on 3 December 2025, marking its launch in 1945 by providing essential news, stories, and connection for rural Australia. Read more about the history of this much loved show here.
The Australian Government has recently developed a Cyber Health Check Tool to provide cyber security guidance to individuals and small businesses including farmers. The tool is a fast and free self-assessment which measures your cyber awareness quickly and easily, and then provides you with customised advice to improve your cyber security.