Farmers have an early finish to harvest

Harvest in the Albany Zone is slowing down, with many farmers finished or nearly finished harvesting their crops and receival sites shutting down.

With the tonnage delivered to CBH also slowing down as harvest passes the halfway mark, recei-val sites in the north-eastern part of the zone have started to close.

Growers who have lots of crops still to harvest are being urged to contact their area manager to arrange options for delivery, with more sites expected to close this week.

Albany Zone manager Adam Wray said it was likely to be one of the earliest finishes in a long time.

Based on anecdotal evidence, there will be a lot of growers at the cricket in Perth this week.

“Good weather has seen a steady couple of weeks recently in the Albany zone, with the majority of the crop now having been received in most areas,” he said.

“The receival rate has started to drop off a little now, running at around 60,000t per day until the end of last week, when harvest bans for fire risk and the subsequent rain in some areas restricted deliveries.

“Deliveries in the eastern areas are now running at a relative trickle, with only the last few growers delivering.

“We are continuing to move tonnes around to keep some of our sites open for receivals where high demand is still present.”

Mr Wray said yields and quality in the east were down initially but had improved as the harvest progressed.

“Grain in the western regions has mostly improved in quality, with better barley malting percentages and wheat characteristics than might have been expected given the earlier frosts and subsequent dry weather,” he said.

CBH staff believe most of the grain yet to be harvested is wheat, with some canola.