Paul and James Diamond

Can you tell us about your property?

The farming operation is situated on 500 hectares, with both breeding and wool production as the primary objectives.

What are some of the opportunities you see for your business/property in coming years?

Situated in Mansfield, we are fortunate with 750mm of average annual rainfall. With the forecast for a super El Nino over the next few years, we are better positioned than others across the country. We also see significant opportunities to better use technology and data to make more productive and sustainable decisions.

And what are your main challenges now, and into the future?

Our main challenge is finding a sustainability strategy which works alongside our main objectives of production and land improvement. The costs to measure carbon sequestration is way too high and the generational costs of carbon credits and compliance is far too significant at this stage,  especially since we are not immune from bushfires and other natural elements that could impact our compliance. 

How has climate change impacted your farm business?

Variability in weather systems has had a significant influence. We see more extreme events from heat and bushfires to wetter and colder winters. This has caused us to be far more resilient. 

What are some of the on-farm adaptations or changes you’ve been employing in recent years and what’s driving them? How successful have they been, and what benefits have you seen as a result?

We have focused on developing our own solution for Farm Management and safety. The increased weather variability has seen an increased level of concern for both human and animal safety. We developed AirAgri to improve property level insights to make better, more accurate decisions. In summary, AirAgri is designed to help farmers like ourselves record everything from weather events, grazing and pasture improvement to high resolution weather insights, which are far more accurate. 

What are your hopes for Ag in Australia, into the future? 

A future where the government and farmers can work together to create a set of dynamic and flexible solutions. The challenges facing Ag are very unique but also interconnected. They include:

• Weather variability
• Emissions
• Mental health
• Next generation solutions to productivity 
• Increasing input costs
• Labour shortages
• Pest control / biosecurity 

These may be easily separated and compartmentalised in an office but they are all interrelated on the land.  We are hopeful that solutions will be looked at with a more holistic perspective as much as they are reviewed for their individual influence and impact.