Cereals and grains

South Australia’s cereal and grain industries are made up of:

• wheat
• barley
• oats
• minor cereals – triticale, rye
• pulses – field peas, lupins, chick peas, lentils
• oil seeds – canola, rape seed, safflower, sunflower, linseed
• minor grains – rye, triticales, hops, maize.

Industry growth

These industries have been through similar development phases and share common technology, machinery and innovation. Key factors influencing the growth of grain industries includes:

• wheat for flour was a high priority staple food in the developing SA colony
• growth of beer consumption resulted in expansion of malting barley production to supply breweries
• declining importance of draft horses resulted in reduced oat production and chaff manufacture
• development of grains for feeding intensive pigs, poultry, dairy and beef cattle
• growing importance of pulses for human consumption across the world
• replacement of animal fats with oil seeds (e.g. butter displaced by margarine) in human diets across the world.

Learn about the SA Grains Industry Trust (SAGIT) that supports grain growing research and projects that benefit the local grains industry.

Wheat

Early development of SA’s cereal industries was dominated by wheat, initially for domestic consumption, and subsequently as a key export commodity.

Learn about challenges of the wheat industry up to the present day, including important documented turning points that supported and transformed its efficiency.

Chaff and hay

During world War II, chaff and hay were needed to feed draft horses that were vital to production and transport in South Australian industries.

The government ensured that adequate supplies were available across the state through legislation, which determined that chaff and hay it be acquired compulsively from producers. The farming community cooperated remarkably well to the degree that there were few bad debts.

Read about the procedures and implications of collecting and supplying chaff and hay in South Australia: Some Notes on Chaff and Hay Production 1944, P.C. Angove, written in July 1976 (PDF 116.1 KB).

175th anniversary Royal Show

The historical context of the South Australian cereal industry was prepared by Dr John Radcliffe, former Director-General of Agriculture, for the 175th Anniversary of the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society of South Australia Inc.

We thank the Society for allowing this material to be published by the History of Agriculture Project.