Maclean et al. - 2002 - Rice almanac source book for the most important e

The island continent of AUSTRALIA is surrounded by the Tasman and Coral Seas to the east,
the Arafura and Timor Seas to the north, and the Indian Ocean to the west and south. Australia
is about the same size as the continental United States, but its population in 1999 of 18.7
million is only about 7% of that of the United States. The western two-thirds of the continent
ranges from hyperarid to semiarid. The majority of the population lives along the relatively
well-watered eastern and southeastern coasts.
The climate ranges from the warm humid tropics to cool subtropics. Agriculture contributes
about 4% to GDP. The main feature of Australian agriculture is the dominance of large-scale
dryland farming and grazing systems. Most irrigated agriculture is found in the Murray-Darling
Basin in New South Wales. Irrigated agriculture represents 16% of the value of agricultural
production; about 5% of the value of irrigated agriculture is rice.
General information
• GNI per capita PPP$, 2000: 24,970
• Internal renewable water resources: 343 km 3
• Main food consumed: meat, wheat, sugar
and honey, oil and fat, milk
• Rice consumption, 1999: 7.9 kg milled rice
per person per year
Production season
Planting Harvesting
Main season, New South Wales Oct Mar-Apr
Main season, West Australia Nov Apr-May
Production constraints
Rice yield and production have increased
substantially since 1990. The national yield in
2000 was the world's highest. The following are
the major constraints to sustainable rice
production in Australia:
• Stagnation of the yield potential of rice
varieties
• Limited water supply for irrigation
• Increasing salinity of rice soils
• Low temperature
• High production costs
• Increasing concern about environmental
degradation
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