Faba bean production gets support with Stirlings to Coast trials following successful shipment last year

New faba bean trials through the Great Southern are kicking off with the aim of improving profitability in legumes production after a successful shipment from Albany last year. The new trials will investigate weed control and varietal performance in the beans, while researching the value in profitable nitrogen-fixing legumes. Growers in the Great Southern began exporting faba beans out of the Port of Albany for the first time last year when 5000 tonnes of the legume were shipped to Egypt on a Commodity Ag co-ordinated voyage aboard the Vantage Euphoria. Stirlings to Coast grower group chief executive Lizzie von Perger said the project was a direct response to increasing grower interest in the profitability and reliability of grain legumes. She said a barrier to confidence in growing more of the legume locally was controlling broadleaf in early-sown situations. “At a time when input costs remain a major pressure on mixed farming businesses, profitable grain legumes like faba beans can offer real value in rotation,” Ms von Perger said. “They provide a cash crop opportunity, while their nitrogen-fixing ability can help reduce fertiliser requirements for following crops and improve whole-farm sustainability.” A range of on-label weed control approaches will be compared with weed pressure, yield, input costs, and crop safety measures throughout the cropping season as part of the trials. Stirlings to Coast trials officer Liam Guthrie said it was a highly practical local trial aimed at “squarely” answering questions from local growers and advisers in the paddock. “We want to identify weed control strategies that not only work in early-sown faba beans but also stack up economically,” he said. “At the same time, we’ll be looking at whether the next generation of faba bean lines can deliver better yields and stronger disease resistance under Great Southern conditions. “If we can help growers manage weed risk, improve crop performance and build confidence in faba beans as a profitable option, the benefits extend beyond the crop itself. “Better-performing legumes can contribute nitrogen to the system, support rotational diversity and potentially help reduce fertiliser cost pressure in subsequent seasons.” The project was developed after consultation by Stirlings to Coast and local growers in the Great Southern region. Ms von Perger said the region had seen an uptick of momentum around grain legumes because of rotational and soil health benefits. “With new opportunities now available for growers to deliver faba beans locally for direct bulk export from the Port of Albany through Commodity Ag, there is growing commercial interest in creating reliable local supply,” she said. “That gives our growers another pathway to market and strengthens the case for legumes as a valuable and profitable part of the farming system.”