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Fertile year for one in four WA farmers
26 Aug 2003
One quarter of Western Australian farmers had a bumper year in 2002-2003, largely due to the uneven impact of the drought. BankWest's annual benchmarks survey shows that the average operating profit of the top 25 per cent of WA farms rose 13 per cent to $187 per hectare last financial year. At the same time, the average operating profit of all WA farms fell by a third to only $52/ha, taking the four-year average to $47/ha.
Overall, WA farm business generated an average return on capital employed of 1.6 per cent in 2002-2003, down from 5.3 per cent the previous year. The top 25 per cent of farms generated an average return of 11.3 per cent, down from 12.7 per cent in 2001-2002.
BankWest said those farmers lucky enough to receive good rains had also benefited from an increase in prices for farm commodities caused by drought-induced shortages. The Central Midlands and Great Southern regions were the best performing rural areas in WA last year.
Grain handler Co-operative Bulk Handling said last week it's gearing up for a 12 million-plus tonne crop, more than double the size of last season's 5.2 million tonne harvest, and above the previous record of 12.2 million tonnes in 1999-2000.
The West Australian, 26/8/03.
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