The NFF is very concerned that Buffel grass is once again being targeted for greater regulatory control despite the overwhelming evidence that Buffel grass is a ‘Feed of National Significance’ and not a Weed of National Significance (WoNS). This is particularly true in South Australia where there is a growing number of truly invasive and destructive plants (example: Onion weed (Asphodelus fistulosus)) that are being left almost untreated while one of Australian agriculture’s most important plants is being targeted and given greater attention and priority. Given the limited amount of time and resources, it is absolutely essential that all levels of Governments target weeds before they get out of control and not wait until it is too late.
Buffel grass has been in Australia since 1870 and has been widely used throughout the nation to improve the Cattle industry’s natural capital. Focussing on Buffel grass’s negative impacts largely ignores the significant impact the Australian cattle industry has made to rural and remote Australia. Buffel grass directly adds over $5.0 billion to our economy making it one of the most important plants to the sector and has many indirect benefits including an effective way to reduce Australia’s Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions.
Buffel grass is a productive agricultural plant species of significant value and criticality to livestock producers especially across arid and semi-arid regional areas. It is a high-yielding, reliable, and drought-resistant livestock feed resource that also provides important complementary land management benefits including land rehabilitation and soil erosion mitigation (due to its ability to quickly revegetate highly disturbed areas). These attributes make Buffel grass an important productive asset for pastoral businesses and the regional and remote communities that they support. It is therefore clear that the impacts of Buffel grass are extremely complex despite what some non-food producer stakeholders claim.
View NFF’s full submission here.