Completed projects and reports

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Sugar Research Australia, Sugar Research Development Corporation and BSES reports from completed research projects and papers.

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Understanding interactions between basecutters and other forward-feed components with the cane stalk : Final report 2016/952
(Sugar Research Australia Limited, 2020) Norris, CP; Plaza, F
Increasing harvesting speed has been necessary to facilitate the large increases in productivity required by the harvesting fleet to manage sugarcane-industry cost pressures. Whilst the power and processing throughput of the harvesters has been able to easily meet this requirement, the design of the ‘front end’ of the harvesters has undergone relatively little functional change since their initial development over 50 years ago. Linking rotational speeds of basecutters and gathering/forward feed components to groundspeed was hypothesised to optimise machine performance and minimise damage over a much wider operating speed range than with current machines. The data indicates that very significant gains can be made by reducing the damage associated with the gathering and knockdown functions of harvesters, and the magnitude of the potential gains warrants significant research focus. Chris Norris conducted this research in conjunction with QUT. Chris is an agricultural engineer with over 40 years’ experience, including 20 years in the sugarcane industry. He previously managed the BSES harvesting research program and has consulted internationally on sugarcane farming and harvesting. This project was funded in partnership between SRA and the Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Environment through the Rural R&D for Profit program.
Enhancing the sugar industry value chain by addressing mechanical harvest losses through research, technology and adoption : Final report 2016/901
(Sugar Research Australia Limited, 2020) Manasta, G; Samson, P
The project addressed the challenges of mechanical sugarcane harvesting, that include damage to the crop, cane loss from the harvester and high levels of extraneous matter sent to the mill. It did this by developing harvester modifications, new sensing technology and decision-support tools, better cane-cleaning systems, and delivering an adoption program to drive Harvesting Best Practice.
Adoption of practices to mitigate harvest losses : Final report 2019/951
(Sugar Research Australia Limited, 2020) Patane, P; Norris, CP; Nothard, B; Pfumayaramba, T; Venables, C
Patane (et al. 2019) determined that Harvesting Best Practice (HBP) is predicated by two essential objectives. 1. Defining the critical point where harvesting losses can be minimised and delivered yields improved to achieve the best economic return for the grower and harvesting operation; and 2. Balancing losses with cane quality, which is determined by sound billet quality with an acceptable level of Extraneous Matter (EM). Despite significant research into the impact of higher harvester pour rates and fan speeds on harvested cane yields, use of HBP recommendations prior to the commencement of the adoption program across the industry was relatively low. Full HBP adoption across the Australian sugarcane industry could substantially increase industry revenue without the need for horizontal expansion (increase in cane land). In 2019, continuing on from the work conducted by Patane (et al. 2019), Sugar Research Australia in partnership with the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries delivered further trials.
Commercial scale economic evaluation of post-harvest cane cleaning to maximise the returns to the supply shain : Final report 2016/953
(Sugar Research Australia Limited, 2019) Ginns, S
This project examined three cane supply treatments; Commercial harvesting, Low Loss harvesting and Low Loss Harvesting plus cleaning; to determine if post-harvest cane cleaning offered benefits over harvesting alone. As a basic concept, it was expected that reducing harvester extractor fan speed would reduce cane loss, resulting in increased CCS yield but also increased trash content, and that the post-harvest cane cleaning operation would remove the additional trash, maintaining the higher CCS yield. To facilitate this project, a mobile cane cleaner (MCC) was purchased from Norris ECT by SRA. The MCC was leased by the project from SRA. Major modifications to the cleaning chamber of the NorrisECT 180 mobile cane cleaner (MCC 180) were necessary. The MCC was a prototype machine not suitable for commercial use. The results did support the expectation of higher CCS yield with lower extractor fan speed, but much of the higher yield measured by low loss harvesting was lost after post-harvest cane cleaning. Economic analysis quantified harvesting costs and the resulting product income. In an experiment on Rajinder Singh’s farm, the treatment with post-harvest cane cleaning was found to be less economically attractive than the normal harvesting treatment, even with the lower transport cost in getting cane to Mossman Mill, a distance of 95 km. The project did not measure an increase in CCS yield from the low loss harvesting plus cane cleaning treatment to improve upon sugar income.
Masterclasses in soil health and soil biology for the sugar industry : Final report 2016/025
(Sugar Research Australia Limited, 2018) Stirling, G; Evers, A; Young, A; Anderson, J; Garcia-Cuenca, S
A total of 252 sugar growers, productivity services staff and others attended a series of Master Classes in Soil Health/Soil Biology that were held in 2017 and 2018. During those classes they had the opportunity to see some of the microscopic organisms that are found in soil and learn how sugar farming systems could be modified to improve soil biological health. The classes were run by Dr Graham Stirling (Biological Crop Protection), Dr Anthony Young (University of Queensland), Dr Jay Anderson (University of Queensland) and Mr Sebastien Garcia-Cuenca (Sugar Research Australia). However, the highlight of each class was the presentation by one of three growers: Ashley Petersen, Tony Chapman and Simon Mattsson. They explained how they were able to modify their farming system and discussed the soil health and economic benefits they had obtained. Each class concluded with a discussion on how growers could move forward and improve the health of their soils. The process involved identifying the key soil constraints that were limiting productivity; developing an action plan to rectify the problems; modifying the farming system in some way; and then instigating a monitoring program to confirm that benefits had been obtained. Feedback from the participants indicated that the classes were a resounding success. Comments were overwhelmingly positive and compliments such as “excellent course: engaging and interesting”, “the use of microscopes, practical application was great!” and “continue this every year!” were received. Those who attended clearly enjoyed the classes and most indicated that they were willing to accept the challenge of implementing a soil improvement plan.
Smarter Irrigation; educating growers in innovative on-farm water management and scheduling practices : Final report 2017/802
(Cotton Research and Development Corporation, 2018) Jaramillo, A
The general objective of the project was to realise significant productivity and profitability improvements for sugarcane growers. Engage in coaching and training activities with seven sugarcane growers in the use of innovative irrigation scheduling tools available and supported by the extension community in the Burdekin. Deliver a report on the actions and activities taken in the education of sugarcane growers in innovative on-farm water management and irrigation scheduling practices.
An assessment of the potential of remote sensing based irrigation scheduling for sugarcane in Australia : Final report 2015/082
(Cotton Research and Development Corporation, 2017) Sinha, P; Lamb, DW; Robson, A
There is currently no operational method of managing irrigation in Australia’s sugar industry on the basis of systematic, direct monitoring of sugar plant physiology. Satellite remote sensing systems, having come a long way in the past 10 years now offer the potential to apply the current ground-based ‘FAO’ or ‘crop coefficient (Kc)’ approach in a way that offers a synoptic view of crop water status across fields. In particular, multi-constellation satellite remote sensing, utilising a combination of freely available Landsat and Sentinel 2 imagery, supplemented by paid-for imagery from other existing satellite systems is capable of providing the necessary spatial resolution and spectral bands and revisit frequency. The significant correlations observed between Kc and spectral vegetation indices (VIs), such as the widely used normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) in numerous other crops bodes well for the detection and quantification of the spatial difference in evapotranspiration (ETc) in sugar which is necessary for irrigation scheduling algorithms.
Evaluation of scheduling tools for the sugar industry : Final project 2015/082
(Cotton Research and Development Corporation, 2017) Jaramillo, A
This study was commissioned to Sugar Research Australia (SRA) and AgriTech Solutions to evaluate the irrigation scheduling tools in the sugar industry and assess the feasibility of using satellite imagery as part of a scheduling platform for the sugarcane industry. In the sugarcane industry in Australia, the use of irrigation scheduling tools has been rather limited in spite of the recognition that water is one of the main drivers of production. In September 2017, Sugar Research Australia (SRA) held an industry wide Irrigation Forum, in which the general consensus was that irrigation was the biggest single driver of productivity above other factors that the industry could control. Recent grower surveys1, indicate the over 63% of the growers interviewed do not use any irrigation scheduling tool; so three out of five sugarcane farmers do not measure water in the soil or as inflow applied in each irrigation event. Statistics from the last decade, indicated that only 9% of growers plan future investment in soil water monitoring equipment.
Modernisation of furrow irrigation in the sugar industry : Final report 2014/079
(Sugar Research Australia Limited, 2017) Gillies, M
Irrigation is an essential part of sugarcane production in many of the sugarcane regions in Australia. Like all agricultural industries, the Australian sugarcane industry is under continuous pressure to demonstrate that it is using water resources in a profitable and responsible manner. Much of the industry is situated on the Queensland coast in close proximity to the Great Barrier Reef Lagoon, which increases the importance of good management and minimising offsite impacts. The industry has been proactive in this regard, most recently through the Smartcane BMP programme. These initiatives are a formal recognition that growers are actively engaging with the principles of sustainability and minimising adverse environmental outcomes.
An analysis of sugar production issues in the Ord River Irrigation Area : SRDC technical report 01/2000
(Sugar Research and Development Corporation, 2000) Leslie, JK; Byth, DE
The analysis considered both cane yield and sugar content. A Preliminary Report in October 1998 utilised 1996 and 1997 production data, and concentrated on whether that data evidenced any changes from the pilot phase of 1977-1983. It concluded that there has been no apparent change in yield or quality of millable stalk. The pilot projections of commercial expectations did not discount sufficiently for the effects of mechanical harvesting. Cane losses, extraneous matter and soil contamination have reduced pol in commercial deliveries on average 2.33% pol below the level in millable stalk. This report updates those conclusions and extends to several other issues.

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