The North Coast has become the largest soybean producing area in Australia as a result of expanding soybean production in the region, coupled with extensive inland drought, particularly in Queensland.

The North Coast has developed a reputation as a producer through all seasons of high quality, GM-free soybeans.

Last season the region produced approximately 25,000 tonnes of soybean grain, almost half of the total national production.

Apart from the cash value of the grain, soybean is also an integral component of many coastal farming systems.

Soybean crops provide a beneficial break crop for sugar cane which covers around 450,000 hectares of coastal land in Queensland and northern NSW.

Soybean crops form an integral part of dryland winter cereal cropping and beef grazing enterprises on the coast.

The Beef ’n’ Beans system uses a soybean phase to improve pastures by direct drilling soybean into degraded or unimproved pastures.

Seed of pasture or forage crops, for example, oats is then commonly sown by aircraft into the senescing soybean crop.

The pasture or forage crop germinates in the stubble of the soybean crop, making immediate use of nitrogen residues.

This no-till option conserves soil moisture, improves soil structure and assists in providing stock feed during winter and early spring, which can be a dry and difficult time to maintain feed on the North Coast.

Soybean is also suited for silage, regularly used by dairy producers in the region.

Winter cereal crops such as barley and triticale, particularly short season varieties, are well suited to direct drilling into soybean crop stubble.

Organically produced culinary soybeans have commanded premium prices in recent seasons.

Breeding and evaluating non-GM varieties of soybean to suit the wide variety of climates and farming systems in Australia has been the primary focus of the National Soybean Improvement Program, a collaborative effort between NSW Department of Primary Industries, CSIRO, Queensland DPI and Fisheries, Victorian DPI and the Grains Research and Development Corporation.

New soybean varieties must also possess superior yield, protein level, disease tolerance and weathering tolerance.

More recently emphasis has also been placed on developing varieties with large seed and a clear or colourless hilum (the scar left on the seed coat where it attached to the pod).

This has enabled growers to expand from traditional crushing markets (for oil and animal feed) into culinary or human consumption markets, eg. soymilk, tofu and soyflour.

This market is expanding and usually pays growers a higher price than the traditional crushing market particularly if the beans are of export quality.

Research efforts through the National Soybean Improvement Program are addressing these priorities and delivering better soybean varieties to farmers in eastern Australia.

Recently released coastal varieties include Cowrie and Surf for North Coast NSW and Stuart for tropical Queensland.

These are amongst the first clear hilum varieties suited to coastal production and produce grain that is suitable for the expanding culinary market.

Contact Natalie Moore, Grafton, (02) 6640 1637, natalie.moore@dpi.nsw.gov.au

This story appears Agriculture Today.