Wheat Cropping in Australia

Wheat has always been the major grain crop in Australia, currently contributing about 16 million tons or 60 percent of national grain production, followed by barley with 17 percent. Wheat farming began in the late eighteenth century soon after European settlement in order to meet domestic needs. In the latter part of the nineteenth century (after 1860) wheat area expanded rapidly as railways were developed and exporting assumed major importance; today around 75 percent of the crop is exported. However, since wool production was the most important rural enterprise in the early years, the wheat industry developed in conjunction with sheep grazing and nowadays most wheat in Australia is produced in the wheat-sheep zone. The dominance of exporting and the presence of sheep are unique and important features of wheat farming in Australia. This chapter will describe physical aspects of the Australian wheat farming environment, before returning to the evolution of this diverse wheat farming system, its current physical and economic status, and its future challenges.