Cane farmers will have the opportunity to learn and share experiences about growing sugarcane crops using regenerative farming practices at the upcoming Regenerative Cane Farming Forum in Ingham next weekend.
Growers, who are coming from all parts of Queensland, will gain insight into the newest innovations happening in the industry and see first-hand how other farmers have implemented specific changes to their system.
The forum, taking place next Thursday and Friday, was the brainchild of a group of North Queensland farmers who met at the National Biological Farming Conference in 2018.
"The cane growers in the wet tropics have had a lot of pressure applied to them to adopt new practices to reduce their impact on the environment because of the Great Barrier Reef," said Ingham cane grower and committee member, Simon Mattsson.
"There was a group of growers up there who I got to know over a period of time of being the ones who were really active in the space.
"It naturally evolved. We wanted to help other growers, share our knowledge and encourage other growers to adopt these practices.
"The first forum took place in Ingham in 2019 and then we repeated it in Cairns in 2020 and then COVID hit, so this is the third one now."
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Mr Mattsson, who grew up in his parent's cattle property in central Queensland and now runs a small orchid in Ingham, was awarded a Nuffield scholarship in 2014 to study soil biology and biological function in agricultural settings.
This saw him travel to 15 different countries to see how other farmers and researchers from across the globe were tackling soil degradation, which he said inspired him to help other farmers improve their soil health.
"I've been interested in improving the health of my own soils for the best part of two or three decades," he said.
"Ever since [receiving the scholarship] I have been very interested in helping farmers to improve the health of their soils, and that is what the regenerative cane forum is all about.
"We've selected four growers to help us to tell their story to help encourage more adoption.
"We also have a number of guest speakers who will share their knowledge."
Mr Mattsson said plant diversity for soil health is key and hopes the forum will help farmers identify opportunities for change and growth on their own farms.
"You can't have biological function without plant diversity; the two go hand in hand," he said.
"It's all about farmers teaching farmers.
"It really is about inspiring change, and enabling those farmers who have been on this road for a while to tell their story, and help growers that are hesitant to actually see how they could adopt these practices on their own farm."
