The 2022 Bayer Cotton Grower of the Year is Nick Gillingham of Sundown Pastoral Company’s Keytah, with Tipperary Station’s Bruce Connolly winning the AgriRisk High Achiever of the Year award.
The cream of the rice crop was celebrated at the Australian Cotton Conference awards dinner on the Gold Coast.
Sundown Pastoral operates Keytah near Moree in New South Wales. The farm consists of 25,000 hectares with 10,000ha under irrigation and half-used for cotton annually in a 100 per cent rotation.
In addition, 10,000ha are assigned to dryland cropping with a further 5000ha retained as native vegetation.
Company directors/owners David and Danielle Statham are heavily involved in day-to-day activities, working closely with their 20 full-time staff, headed by Mr Gillingham.
The winner of the 2021 Grower of the Year – and a judge this year – Tony Quigley said Keytah invested in research, were certified to level 3 in the myBMP program and applied and shared their learnings, which had improved the industry as a whole.
“Firstly, the crop was very impressive with its 75-centimetre farming system, coupled with the new Sicot 606BRF variety a great fit,“ Mr Quigley said.
“The carbon budgeting they’re doing there – and being able to be neutral from a carbon point of view – is very impressive.
“But also the traceability of their cotton product and how they’re being able to market that into the future, using both the carbon story but also the providence story.”
Located 160 kilometres south of Darwin, Tipperary Station – the AgriRisk High Achiever of the Year – is into its fourth year of growing rainfed cotton, quickly becoming the biggest grower of cotton in the Northern Territory.
Mr Quigley said Tipperary’s farm manager Bruce Connolly had achieved so much despite significant challenges.
“Tipperary was an eye opener,“ he said.
“It’s an entirely different production system from what we are all used to and also very isolated in terms of back up and expertise in the area.
“They’ve really pioneered a cotton industry in the NT and they’ve done it soundly in terms of stewardship.
“They are the first farm in the Territory to be certified with the myBMP program.”
The Cotton Seed Distributors Researcher of the Year is soil scientist Dr Oliver Knox, the University of New England’s Associate Professor of Soil Systems Biology and CottonInfo technical lead for soil health.
Dr Knox recently released a new framework for soil health and is taking the research lead on cotton circularity with two projects scheduled for this year.
Cotton Australia CEO Adam Kay congratulated all award winners and all nominees.
“Every person nominated deserves recognition here because they are all game-changers in their own way,“ he said.
“These awards have shown me two important factors in our ongoing commitment to become even better at growing Australia cotton.
“We have the most experienced and intelligent operators who have already contributed decades to the industry while recognising some of our younger participants who are bringing a fresh approach to cotton farming.”
Bernie George, the water services and compliance manager at Australian Food & Fibre, won the prestigious Incitec Pivot Fertilisers Service to the Cotton Industry award.
“Bernie has been delivering excellence in service to the cotton industry through various high-profile roles for more than 30 years, including as chair of the Cotton Australia Board and as a member of the National Irrigators Council and NSW Irrigators Council,“ Mr Kay said.
“His contribution has been immense and this recognition is well deserved.“
