Agribusiness

The Spud King's battle with potato regulators is a flagship fight for those who want to cut red tape.

An industry consortium led by members of the Chamber of Fruit and Vegetable Industries in WA has been selected as the preferred bidder for Market City, putting the state government a step closer to its first major asset sale.

Publicly-listed almond grower and health food retailer Select Harvests has sold its Western Australian orchard project for $9.5 million, following $60 million of write-downs over the past three years.

Wellard chief executive Mauro Balzarini rung the bell at the ASX's Perth office this morning as the company's shares began trading for the first time.

Carbon Conscious plans to expand its business into the dairy sector, announcing plans to purchase a South West dairy property and link up with a Chinese trading group.

Seafood producer and one of Western Australia's largest private companies, Kailis Bros, has been fined $10,800 by the consumer watchdog for misleading conduct.

CBH Group has confirmed half a tonne of canola grain was spilt into Cockburn Sound last month, as Fisheries experts continue to probe why more than 1,500 dead fish have washed up in Perth's south.

SPECIAL REPORT: Newly appointed chief executives in Western Australia are mostly receiving lower salaries than their predecessors, but retaining plenty of upside through incentive schemes, a survey of nearly 40 new CEO pay packages has found.

Farmers in Pemberton are hoping to add a new ingredient to the South West town's successful business recipe, pinning their hopes on growing the market for finger limes.

CBH Group has cut its estimate of Western Australia's grain harvest for the second time in five weeks, with the farmers' cooperative now tipping it will handle 12.5 million tonnes in the current se

Potato growers have poured cold water over reports earlier today that they'll support deregulation of the industry, with the Potato Marketing Corporation saying it did not make any such recommendations and one senior grower representative labeling it a media stunt.

Commercial fishing company Austral Fisheries has taken the top prize in the agribusiness category at this year's Australian Export Awards.

Live cattle exporter Wellard is set to list at $1.39 per share, launching a prospectus to raise close to $300 million to give the business a market capitalisation of almost $560 million.

Treasurer Scott Morrison is willing to consider any new applications to buy Australia's largest private landowner after knocking back the foreign acquisition of S Kidman and Co Ltd on national interest grounds.

Agribusiness Elders is focusing on growth, having completed a significant turnaround with a $38.3 million full-year profit.

The upcoming float of livestock exporter Wellard is set to be the fifth biggest in Western Australia's history, and will also stretch the market lead of investment bank UBS, according to research by Business News.

Tony Galati's battle with the Potato Marketing Corporation has been dealt a setback, after the regulator won an injunction from the Supreme Court to prevent him producing more than his allocated quota, until at least January 2.

Wellard managing director Mauro Balzarini is planning to sell a 60 per cent stake in the livestock export business through an initial public offering (IPO) that will be one of Western Australia's largest.

Western Australian farmers are the most likely in the nation to hire new employees in the year ahead, according to the annual Commonwealth Bank of Australia Agri Insights survey.

Commodity prices are expected to rebound in the next two years, according to forecasts by the Economist Intelligence Unit, led by a sharp rise in the crude oil price and a lift in base metals.

South African fishing company Sea Harvest Group has committed to take its maximum possible entitlement under a planned $16 million-plus capital raising by Perth company Style.

From mining to agriculture, technology and finance, 40under40 award winners have been making news this year.

SPECIAL REPORT: Earnings for the state from the powerhouse minerals and energy industries have softened, but agriculture, among other sectors, will create opportunities. Business News also takes an in depth look at Bunbury port, where a big expansion plan needs community backing and solid regional demand growth.

Bannister Downs Dairy Company managing director Sue Daubney is aiming to rebuild Azzura Gelati to its former glory after striking a deal this week to buy the local ice-cream manufacturer.

Former Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono wants to see closer agricultural ties between Australia and Indonesia.

With the resources sector in the doldrums, another of Australia's traditional strengths – agriculture – is standing tall.

Style chairman Peter Hutchinson has boosted his fledgling seafood business with the recruitment of experienced agribusiness executive David Lock as managing director.

An organic farmer who took his GM-canola-cultivating neighbour to court claiming contamination faces losing his property after an unsuccessful appeal against a huge legal bill.

The competition watchdog plans to grant a regulatory exemption to WA Chip & Pulp Co, which will allow the Japanese-owned woodchip exporter to continue its partnership with international grain trader Bunge at the Port of Bunbury.

A big group of Western Australian farmers is among unsecured creditors expecting to receive as little as 7 cents in the dollar from the collapse of failed fertiliser supplier Superfert Dongbu.

Truffle production in Western Australia's South West is on the verge of significant growth as a number of new producers enter the market and a series of previously planted trees reach maturity.

A run of good seasons has put Western Australian grain farmers in an improved position, according to the latest Planfarm Bankwest Benchmarks data.