Early plant pays off for sorghum growers as prices hit yearly highs

Above average rainfall before and during the main sowing period in September and October helped set up the plants. However, a dry summer has seen the later crop struggle.

The Hamilton family west of Condamine finished harvesting their 500 hectares last Friday and reported 'average to above average' yields.

"I'm glad we got it in when we did, because any later and it'd be starting to struggle with this hot, dry weather that's upon us now," Jake Hamilton said.

Jake, who farms with wife Felicity and his father Scott at 5000ha Burradoo, said they planted in October on the back of 110mm of rain - one of their last significant falls.

"It was very, very wet to start with. Planting it wasn't much fun purely because of how wet it was and it was all into melon hole country that hasn't been levelled yet."

Sorghum has been an attractive crop to grow this season as prices hover around $400/t.

"The sorghum market is very strong at the moment. You don't have to go back too many years and it was $180 a tonne," Mr Hamilton said.

He said their crop was going to Queensland Bulk Terminals and was probably destined for China.

Two hours east at Ranges Bridge near Macalister, Dan Hayllor of Graincott Farming Co started harvesting his 500ha crop two weeks ago.

He's happy with the early crop but has reservations about the later crop.

"We had some very, very good early dryland sorghum and then we're into some irrigated sorghum," Mr Hayllor said.

"My read on it is: anything early is going to be pretty good, anything late is going to be pretty average.

"The tap turned off and it's been pretty disappointing. The season had such potential and we really didn't need a lot of rain [to finish]."

Despite high input costs and a split outcome, Mr Hayllor said it was still going to be a decent season.

"Commodity prices are good. Late dryland is going to be a bit disappointing, but what you're going to grow is still going to be worth a bit of money, which is good. It's not all negative."

The grower is looking to defoliate his early cotton in mid to late March and hopes to have a picker in the paddock late March or early April.

In Central Queensland, Dane Lund at Clermont has about 2500ha of sorghum in.

He said they're three or four weeks from harvest, while others in the district are just finishing planting.

"We had a good start to the season but just like every farmer, you're one more storm away from getting good rain and a good crop," he said.

"If we can get a good drink in the next month or so there will be some pretty handy crops, but if not, it'll just be an average or less than average year."

The USDA February grain and feed update, which is more recent than ABARES' December outlook, has seen the Australian sorghum production estimate for 2022-23 upward revised to 2.9 million tonnes.

If realised, this would be the second highest on record, but well below the record of 3.8mt set in 2007-08.

The revised production estimate of 2.9mt is about 80 per cent above the previous 10-year average.

The US Foreign Agricultural Service estimates harvested area at 740,000ha, significantly below the official USDA estimate of 840,000ha.

FAS forecasts domestic sorghum consumption in 2022-23 at 510,000t.

Although domestic consumption is expected to rise, it is anticipated to remain relatively low mainly due to the dynamics of an increase in feedlots converting to white grain use during the previous drought and little inclination to revert back to using sorghum.

Industrial consumption of sorghum for the production of fuel ethanol is not expected to resume as the only processing facility in Australia remains mothballed.

The FAS sorghum export forecast for 2022-23 has been upward revised to 2.4mt.

China is traditionally the major export destination for Australian sorghum, historically accounting for well over 80 percent of overall exports, and is due to take the bulk.

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