WITH half of Queensland now drought-declared, beef producers across large areas of northern Australia are looking for some relief in the form of a spring break.

How are the prospects shaping up for your region of Queensland, the Northern Territory or other regions of Eastern Australia?

BeefConnect, a collaboration involving FutureBeef and Beef Central, will host an informative one-hour webinar later this month exploring the topic, “Will it rain this year?”

Webinars allow stakeholders to participate in a ‘virtual seminar’ at their computer in the comfort of their home or office, without the time commitment involved in travelling to a destination to receive the information.

The weather outlook webinar, to be staged on Tuesday, September 17, follows earlier successful webinar collaborations between FutureBeef and Beef Central on wide-ranging topics including the new Pasturefed Cattle Assurance System and Long-Distance MSA Transport.

The question on many producers’ lips this Spring is, “Will it rain this year?”

In this webinar presentation, we will explore the variability of our climate – particularly rainfall (droughts and floods). It will also look at the use and relevance of seasonal forecasts and some tools to aid in decision making.

While the content will focus primarily on Queensland, it will also cover circumstances in New South Wales, Victoria and the Northern Territory.

Content will include:

• an overview of our climate
• the main drivers of our climate at different time-scales
• the variability of our climate, particularly rainfall (droughts and floods)
• the use and relevance of seasonal forecasts
• case studies using seasonal forecasts
• some tools to aid in decision-making.

Guest presenter will be Queensland Government weather scientist Dave McRae, who will be joined by hosts Jon Condon (Beef Central) and John James (FutureBeef).

Who should register for this webinar?

This event is for anyone involved along the beef supply chain impacted by weather outcomes, including producers, processors, brand managers, supply chain managers, agents, extension and advisory personnel, and consultants.

The session will be recorded and a link will be sent to all those who register, allowing interested parties to replay the program, should they be tied-up on the day.

The webinar will start at 12:30pm AEST (Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart); 10:30 am (Perth), or Noon (Darwin and Adelaide)

To successfully participate in this webinar:

1. Reserve your webinar seat now by following this link. Or copy and paste this into your web browser: https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/739293846

You need to register to receive your personal login details (if you don’t receive an automated response within a minute or so, check your junk email folder).

2. Click the option to ‘Add to Outlook calendar’ to get an automated reminder to join the webinar.

3. Test your computer set-up beforehand by going to this Citrix website (http://bit.ly/citrix_test) and click on the ‘Join a session’ link. If you have problems, contact your local computer support people or the friendly GoToWebinar support folk (1800 356 792 in Australia).

4. Join 10 minutes early on the day of the webinar. You can interact by typing questions in the Q&A panel or by raising your electronic hand.

• This is a BeefConnect event, brought to you through a partnership between FutureBeef and Beef Central.