The Australian Bureau of Agriculture and Resource Economics and Sciences (Abares) says the future is bright for the country's agricultural production and exports, despite the impact of severe storms and flooding on the sector in recent months.
Abares chief commodity analyst Dr Jammie Penm told the Australian International Business Times that, although individual farmers have suffered as a result of the floods, the overall national outlook looked "positive".
Abares was due to discuss its assessment of the A$2.3bn impact of the recent floods on Australian agriculture at the industry's annual conference Outlook, held in Canberra on 1-2 March.
Outlook 2011 will also address the damage caused by Cyclone Yasi to banana and sugar production in Far North Queensland, Dr Penm said.
Abares estimates that some A$225m of fruit and vegetables have been lost in Queensland as a result of the flooding. Fruit and vegetable production was also damaged in the flood-affected areas of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania.
"Loss of agricultural production and exports due to the recent adverse climatic conditions is estimated to have been A$2.3bn in 2010-11, with significant impacts on production of cereals, sugar, fruit and vegetables, cotton and grain sorghum," Dr Penm told the International Business Times.
"Continued rainfall and flooding in late December and through January caused further significant damage to agriculture in most of the eastern states, as well as in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia."
Dr Penm added that Cyclone Yasi caused signficant damage to banana production in Far North Queensland, which accounts for around 90 per cent of Australia's banana production.
"There has already been a significant increase in banana prices on supermarket shelves," he said.
Abares is a research organisation within the Australian Department of Agriculture.
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