Harvesting groups-the key to improving harvesting practice.

In the 2017 and 2018 crushing seasons, Sugar Research Australia Limited (SRA) conducted a project to assist harvesting groups to reduce sugar loss. The principles of harvesting practice to reduce loss have been well known in the industry for many years. However, at the start of the 2017 season few harvesting groups were operating according to these principles. The harvesting adoption team concluded that there were several socio-economic impediments to harvester operators changing practice, but that many of these could be overcome by working with individual harvesting groups (a harvester owner and the farmers serviced) as these could make decisions on changing arrangements. A demonstration trial evaluating sugar loss from a suite of harvester settings (typically commercial standard, recommended (guided by harvesting best practice (HBP) principles), aggressive and "low-loss" control) was provided for each group involved, with all group members encouraged to attend. This was followed up with at least...