Personalised visits help graziers prepare for Grazing BMP Accreditation

Posted on December 7th, 2015

When Sue and David Walmsley purchased Warm-ley in 2009, the 214 hectare property 6 km south of Injune was in poor condition. For the past five years, the couple has worked closely with Fitzroy Basin Association Inc. (FBA) and their local delivery partner Dawson Catchment Coordinating Association (DCCA) to improve its condition, step by step.
Over that time, Mr and Mrs Walmsley have participated in workshops and industry-specific training, and completed the voluntary, industry-led Grazing Best Management Practices (Grazing BMP) program in October 2014.
“As a land owner, we have a duty of care to ensure that the land and animals are looked after correctly for the future and longevity of the business and resources that we have,” Mrs Walmsley said.
With the help of a personalised, one-on-one property visit from an FBA grazing land management officer, supported by FBA through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme – Sustainable Agriculture, Mr and Mrs Walmsley are now preparing for a Grazing BMP Audit.
FBA grazing land management officer Lyndal Rolfe said the independent property audit is the third and final stage of Grazing BMP so they can achieve Grazing BMP Accreditation.
“Accreditation means that a grazing enterprise’s performance has been independently endorsed and meets industry best practice benchmarks,” Ms Rolfe said.
Accreditation is valid for three years and graziers must undergo another audit at the end of the term to retain accreditation.
“One-on-one property visits are designed to support landholders implement specific actions they identified in Grazing BMP modules, such as preparing for accreditation, mapping property infrastructure or shifting from paper-based monitoring systems to the Stocktake Plus app,” Ms Rolfe said.
Mr and Mrs Walmsley welcomed the personalised approach. “To have the support on-property is great. Access to the knowledge and support in this format has been very beneficial,” Mrs Walmsley said.
Mrs Walmsley’s advice to other graziers considering a one-on-one property visit from FBA is simple. “Get involved and take advantage of what is available,” she said. “There is so much information out there, it can be quite overwhelming when it comes to implementing it on-property. This support from FBA and DCCA has been very helpful to actually get our learnings on-ground and motivated us to continue improving our business.”
For more information about one-on-one property contact FBA on (07) 4999 2800 or for information on Grazing BMP and accreditation, visit www.bmpgrazing.com.au