Kromana Farms in Cunderdin, Western Australia | Agricultural cooperative

Kromana Farms

Locality: Cunderdin, Western Australia

Address: North Cunderdin 6407 Cunderdin, WA, Australia

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23.01.2022 For those who may be interested in driving their truck or donating hay please get in contact with your local area managers. Esperance- Ross Stone Arthur River/... south West- Sam Burgess Albany- Chumpy Cunderdin- Darren Beard Wongan Hills- Wayne Chitty Other depots: Muckinbudin- John Nicoletti

20.01.2022 Went for a lovely wander yesterday while the boys were busy seeding.

16.01.2022 Finn and I have been busy this week. Farmers Across Borders. Hay from WA Into Cobar tomorrow to deliver some much needed hay and straw to the surrounding areas

16.01.2022 Finally finished harvest on 31/12/18, what a way to end a big year! Time now for a break before the trucks head East on the Lions Need for Feed Hay Run.

14.01.2022 Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to our clients, staff, friends and family. Thank you for your support this year we look forward to catching up again soon.

11.01.2022 A MESSAGE TO OUR NON AG FRIENDS - WE NEED TO HAVE A CHAT ABOUT GLYPHOSATE: Firstly, you have a right to feel concerned. Your number one priority is your family,... their health and the safety of the food you eat. Ours too. And like you, we have seen all the stuff splashed across our TV screens and on social media about RoundUp (or glyphosate, it’s active ingredient) and how it supposedly is cancer causing - or at least a major health threat to our families. And we hear people saying we should ban it ‘because it’s bad’, and farmers saying we shouldn’t ‘because we need it’. We hear all sorts of scary claims about farmers dousing their crops with it without a care for anyone, how it has contaminated all of the food chain, how uneducated farmers have been indoctrinated by the chemical industry and more. It’s frightening stuff, I agree. I don’t want my family put at risk either. Surely, even if there is even the smallest chance that its not safe, then isn't the best way forward to ban it just in case? But is that really the answer? Is that really the best way to deal with this? Maybe it is. But can we at least have an open and transparent discussion around some of the claims which have been made, and some of the stuff which has been floating around as ‘fact’ on social media which may not necessarily be the case. Statements like these: 1. All our soils are contaminated with glyphosate, so everything which grows in them will make us sick Firstly, glyphosate is a non-selective herbicide. That means it kills all plants that includes crops. It does so by interrupting the growth process by preventing plants from making certain proteins that are needed for crop growth. It breaks down quickly in the soil, and there is no soil contamination to affect seeds or anything planted after spraying. If there was, they would not grow. 2. Farmers douse their crops with glyphosate We probably need a definition of ‘douse’. Most glyphosate is applied in a range of 0.5 2 litres per hectare. A hectare is 10,000 square metres or 108,000 square feet. It is sprayed on cropping area PRIOR to planting to control weeds, and any residual breaks down quickly in the soil and does not affect planted seeds. If it did, it would kill them as that’s what it is intended to do. There is plenty of discussion on the internet about desiccation, or the process of spraying glyphosate on cereals to dry them down before harvest. This is very rare, and only used in very wet areas. It is certainly not common practice in Australia at least. 3. I believe the reason there is so much gluten intolerance is because of GMO’s and the amount of RoundUp sprayed on our food Firstly, there are no GMO wheat and barleys commercially grown in the world. Secondly, as explained earlier, we do not spray RoundUp on wheat and barley. It would kill them. The practice of desiccation is very rare in Australia and I believe (though someone may wish to correct me on this), that in those rare incidences the practice is used, those cereals cannot be used for human consumption (in Australia at least.) As a net exporter, the wheat milled in Australia is locally grown and so has not been sprayed with RoundUp and yet our rates of gluten intolerance are as high as other places in the world. In a nutshell, it is very hard to draw a link between GMO’s, glyphosate and gluten intolerance. 4. Yes, but apparently farmers spray glyphosate illegally on cereals, putting us in danger We don’t on our farm. We don’t know of anyone who does. If you do, then report them. They don’t deserve to be in our industry. 5. Apparently glyphosate is related to Agent Orange, as used in the jungles in the Vietnam War Not even close. Agent Orange was a defoliant and herbicide, a major component of which was a chemical compound called 2,4-D, which is still used in agriculture today. 2,4-D is a systemic herbicide which causes plants to grow uncontrollably to the point they die - which is a different mode of action to glyphosate. It is a selective herbicide used to kill broad leafed plants, not grasses (or cereals). It is generally disliked by farmers because it is highly toxic, dangerous to handle and has significant off target risks. Ironically, with all the discussion around glyphosate, 2,4-D is rarely mentioned despite it being a commonplace chemical on most farms. The vast majority of farmers would consider glyphosate a much safer option for their crops, food safety and human health than 2,4-D. 6. Studies have proven glyphosate to be carcinogenic. A study by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) identified glyphosate as a ‘probable carcinogenic’. In the same category of risk in this study was drinking coffee, red wine, frying food and eating bacon. At the same time independent regulatory authorities in Australia, the EU, USA, Canada and other countries have concluded that glyphosate does not pose a carcinogenic risk to humans. More than 800 scientific studies have confirmed these regulators stances. A National Institute of Agriculture study in the USA followed 57,000 farmers and registered applicators of glyphosate for 20 years and found no connection between glyphosate and cancer. 7. They claim it is so safe you could drink it that’s ridiculous! Yes it is. The studies also say that it is less toxic than table salt but that doesn’t mean you should sprinkle it on your steak. At the end of the day it is a chemical. It comes with instructions to use it safely for human health for those applying it, and those consuming the product it is being used on. It comes with withholding periods (as do all chemicals) to ensure product breakdown to a safe level which we all need to adhere to. It’s probably similar in toxicity to drinking shampoo, and less toxic than most household cleaners and we would never think of drinking any of them. Frankly, that has been a stupid claim. We have no problem with you being concerned about glyphosate, or any other chemical we use for that matter. It is good that you are, as it keeps us accountable, and it ensures that the health of our food, soil, plants and livestock are at the forefront of what we do. But, we also ask for a level of trust in that we are acting in the best interest of both your families and ours. There are some who say farmers are being held hostage by chemical companies. Not true. Most farmers are not fans of chemicals, certainly not of spraying chemicals and have little contact with chemical companies. The vast majority of us are all accredited in chemical safety and use, and yet it seems a lot of those claiming health concerns are home gardeners, council workers and hobby farmers. Is part of the solution that anyone who purchases and uses a pesticide or herbicide, even just for the household or garden, should also become accredited as farmers are required to be? I want to level with you in full transparency of one of our greatest concerns. It is what we do if glyphosate is banned and removed as an option for us. The non chemical alternative means reverting to cultivation practices of the past, meaning mass erosion, more exposure to drought, less productivity and ultimately much higher prices for the consumer. The chemical alternatives are frightening to us, as it would mean having to use much more toxic chemicals such as 24D (as discussed earlier), and non selective options such as paraquat. Google paraquat - its not a pretty chemical. However, it is still safe to use as long as the safety guidelines are followed. Not only are the options more expensive (which is actually the smaller consideration to us), but they are extremely toxic and pose much more significant health threats than glyphosate ever would. But, unfortunately, this is rarely spoken about. So yes -you have a right to be concerned. Please continue to express those concerns. But most of all, we ask you to walk with us as we genuinely try to provide safe and economically priced food to you all. We are all in this together.

10.01.2022 Also looking for a chaserbin/header driver if you know of anyone.

08.01.2022 Something close to our hearts from some great people

05.01.2022 Great course for farm skills

05.01.2022 Looking for a full time farm hand/truck driver. Must have MC license and farm experience. Mechanical knowledge essential. Located 160km east of Perth. House and work ute supplied. Would suit family as the bus runs straight past the house. Please pass on to anyone who may be interested.

05.01.2022 Jason Murray heading to Meekatharra for Farmers Across Borders. Hay from WA Murchison hay run. Thanks to those in our area that donated to the run. Helping the guys and gals up there who up until very recently hadn’t seen much rain for 3 years.

04.01.2022 Harvest 2018 is underway with Natalie Beard Nathan Walker