Australian pineapple industry heads north for annual Field Days
Townsville in North Queensland is gearing up to host Australia’s pineapple industry next week for their annual Pineapple Field Days.
Organised by the Queensland Fruit & Vegetable Growers (QFVG) in conjunction with the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) on behalf of Australian Pineapples, the two-day event brings together growers and the wider horticultural supply chain, to showcase current research investments, market development opportunities, and advocacy happening across the industry.
On display at this year’s event will be a range of trials focusing on sunburn protection/fruit robustness, water monitoring for improved nutrient use efficiency, new herbicides, and biological nematode suppression.
Australian Pineapples Chair Sam Pike said, “A lot of effort has gone into planning this year’s event, and it is great to see industry, QFVG and DAF working hand in hand to improve the financial and environmental sustainability of the Australian pineapple industry.”
“The past 12 months have been difficult for many pineapple enterprises, with ongoing challenges relating to the cost and availability of key inputs, such as land, labour, and fertiliser,” Mr Pike said.
“These factors have resulted in growers vocalising their willingness to consider production practice changes to gain efficiencies and add value.”
The current DAF-led Pineapple Industry Development and Extension Project is aiming to address these concerns, by providing regionally relevant on-farm trials and extension efforts to build capacity and facilitate industry advancement and cohesion.
DAF Extension Horticulturist Sam Wakefield said fruit quality and consistency were earmarked as an area for ongoing R&D at the inaugural 2023 Pineapple Think Tank, which brought together growers and industry stakeholders to discuss and prioritise the issues and challenges facing the industry.
“Investments in supply chain, consumer and sensory preferences, and the genetics underpinning these preferences will be showcased at the upcoming Pineapple Field Days,” Mr Wakefield said.
Although not as severe as previous years, natural flowering continues to be a problem for the industry, triggered by various environmental stresses.
“In the DAF-led Australian Pineapple Multiplication & Evaluation Program, efforts are being directed towards the development of new varieties with favourable consumer traits that are resistant to natural flowering,” Mr Wakefield said.
“Other environmental challenges in the past year include hot, dry conditions in late 2023, which resulted in large amounts of sunburned fruit, especially in the Yeppoon area. Abnormal rainfall patterns during the summer and autumn of 2024 have delayed field operations, and increased weed and disease pressure.”
The 2024 Pineapple Field Days will be held in Rollingstone, North Queensland from 25 – 26 July.
Commercial pineapple production occurs solely in Queensland, with the industry’s 70 growers producing approximately 65,000 tonnes, with a farmgate value of $52 million. Production occurs in five centres - South-East Queensland, Wide Bay, Yeppoon, Rollingstone, and Mareeba.
