February 7, 2020
Byee cotton grower Brett Enkelmann has won a trip to Western Australia to observe farming practices at Kununurra, thanks to the FastStart Cotton Program.
FastStart is a collaboration between Syngenta Australia and Cotton Seed Distributors that funds research into the early stages of a cotton crop.
The competition compared establishment percentages and uniformity and attracted more than 70 entries in dryland and irrigated categories.
Angus Doolin from North Star, NSW, won the irrigated category while Brett took out the dryland category.
Each grower has won two tickets to tour Kununurra to observe farming practices.
“There are lots of growers out there doing a fantastic job of optimising their seedling establishment through the utilisation of the technology and tools that FastStart is providing,” Syngenta spokesman Sean Roberts said.
“We want to recognise and celebrate this as best practice cotton farming. The awards are a great way of doing this, as well as sharing what good looks like with other growers.”
Brett said he was very honoured to have won the dryland award.
“With the dry weather, this season has been a very challenging time; but with the use of a precision planter, FastStart technologies and a no-till farming system, the benefits are evident in the emergence and strength of this season’s cotton,” he said.
“The cotton industry is well known for its leadership and innovation, and the FastStart Cotton Program is a major contributor to this innovation, with great benefits to the Australian cotton farmer.”
