ABARES says value of production to hit record $66 billion as farmers have their best year yet

Australia’s agriculture sector is booming, with farmers expected to reap a record $66 billion for their produce this year despite trade tensions with China and the global pandemic.

At the same time, the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) has found that food prices jumped more than 15 per cent, as consumers paid more for red meat.

The government’s commodity forecaster said decent weather conditions and a huge grain harvest drove an 8 per cent increase in the value of food…