Profitable pulse network

WHY THIS PROJECT IS NEEDED

Pulse production is expanding across the Riverine Plains, but many growers are still working through the practical and economic challenges of making pulses consistently profitable.

In short: This project will build local confidence and skills by helping growers test practical options, share experience and make better decisions about including pulses in their rotations.

Over the past five years, adoption of faba beans and other pulses has increased as growers have improved their management of constraints such as soil acidity, on-farm storage and marketing.

While more experienced growers now confidently allocate up to one-third of their cropping program to pulses — supported by a stronger local knowledge base and several years of applied research through the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) Pulse Check and Southern Pulse Agronomy programs — other growers still need support to improve yield, grain quality, price outcomes and overall profitability for crops such as faba beans, lentils, chickpeas and lupins.

Feedback from GRDC National Grower Network (NGN) meetings has highlighted ongoing concerns around storage, marketing, pulse genetics suited to southern conditions, and the economics of including well-adapted pulse crops in the rotation.

This project responds directly to those needs by working with growers and advisers to build confidence, strengthen decision-making, and support more profitable and resilient pulse production across the region.

ABOUT THE PROJECT

This project is designed to help farmers build the confidence, knowledge and practical skills needed to grow pulse crops more profitably in the Riverine Plains.

By bringing growers together with advisers and industry, the project will create opportunities to share local experience, discuss what is working on-farm, and explore ways to improve crop performance, grain quality, storage and marketing outcomes.

Farmers involved will be supported to test and compare management options that suit their own farming systems, while also learning from the experiences of others in the region.

Over time, the project aims to strengthen decision-making around pulses and provide practical, locally relevant insights that can help more growers include profitable pulse crops in their rotation.