KEY strategies to improve livestock producer businesses will be covered at the Grassland Society of Southern Australia 57^th annual conference in Hamilton next month.

The theme of the conference on August 31 and September 1 at the Hamilton Showgrounds, Hamilton, Victoria is ‘Ready, Set, Grow’.

Topics will include managing wet areas, lucerne for lambs, climate adaptation and mitigation in agricultural systems, satellite moisture mapping, risk management strategies for grazing enterprises, and the cost of pasture.

Conference participants will also get to see local farms in action during bus field trips.

The program will include local, national and international guest speakers, including Dr Doug Edmeades, the managing director of AgKnowledge in New Zealand. The conference dinner speaker will be Rob McGavin from Cobram Estate.

The conference is expected to attract several hundred producers and service providers from across Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.

It will focus on four main topics: soils, pasture systems, risk management and economics and will include a session on new technologies.

Western District GSSA branch president and conference convener, Ben Young, said the conference would centre on ways to help producers grow more grass and become more profitable.

Mr Young is a prime lamb and beef farmer from Macarthur in south-west Victoria, but said the conference was suitable for producers from all backgrounds.

“It will give producers information they can use on farm and hopefully make changes to their businesses that will make them more profitable and sustainable.

“It is targeted as broadly as possible to appeal to all producers,” he said.

For all conference enquiries, call the GSSA Office on 1300 137 550, or email [email protected]