Drought and climate resilient sheep farms and landscapes tailor-made for low rainfall farming regions

Written By Cristy Houghton

Project overview

Project Funder: Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry – Future Drought Fund
Project Lead Organisation/Researcher:‍ ‍University of Adelaide
Project Durations: 2025-2030
Project Location: CWFS region

Aims/Research questions

The profitability of sheep farming is declining due to the impacts of drought and extreme heat on pasture growth, soil stability and sheep performance.

This project will enhance resilience of sheep production systems by combining climate resilient sheep with novel, drought tolerant pastures, shrubs and trees which enhance consistency of feed supply, stabilise and improve landscape health, and create microclimates that increase sheep welfare and productivity.

Farmer led, long term trials in WA, SA, Vic and NSW will provide the data driven outcomes required to maximise adoption of these drought, climate resilient, and economically robust farming systems, thus strengthening rural communities.

Key objectives

Work with producers and producer groups to design region-specific feed base systems which:

  1. Enhance consistency of feed supply,

  2. Fit within or alongside cropping and pastures systems,

  3. Create microclimates which improve sheep welfare and productivity,

  4. Quantifiably improve landscape stability and ecosystem services.

The project will trial and demonstrate how selecting sheep with greater feed efficiency, energy reserves and heat tolerance improves enterprise resilience.

Validate the benefits of integrating climate adapted sheep with multi-purpose plantings to achieve comprehensive system and landscape resilience.

Partnership

The project is led by University of Adelaide Project. Partners include Agricultural Innovation and Research Eyre Peninsula (SA), Upper North Farming Systems (SA), Mallee Sustainable Farming (Vic), Central West Farming Systems (NSW), Yuna Farm Improvement Group (WA), Liebe Group (WA), Merredin and Districts Farm Improvement Group (WA), Corrigin Farm Improvement Group (WA), and the Grower Group Alliance Inc. (GGA) (WA).

Cristy Houghton

Cristy's unique career has taken her from country NSW to the city lights of Clarendon Street South Melbourne and back again. With an early career in radio as a copywriter and creative strategist, she is now a Jill of all trades as a graphic designer, website builder, blog writer, video editor, social media manager, marketing strategist and more. 

In fact, give her any task and this chick will figure out how to do it! Go on, we dare you!

No, really, we DARE you!!

Cristy has won two Australian Commercial Radio Awards (ACRAs) for Best Ad and Best Sales Promotion, and even has an 'Employee of the Year' certificate with her name on it.

Cristy and her husband James have traveled extensively through Russia, China and South East Asia, and have two fur-babies, Sooty (cat) and Panda (puppy). Cristy loves drinking coffee, meeting people to drink coffee, coffee tasting and coffee flavoured cocktails. She also enjoys road trips, TED Talks and watching cat videos on youtube.

http://www.embarketing.com.au
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