David Claughton
Verified- Executive Producer, Country Breakfast
- Executive Producer, A Big Country
- Executive Producer, NSW Country Hour
Sydney
ABC, Executive Producer, NSW Rural team, journalist/song writer. Views are my own. Tweets on #agriculture #mining
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Articles by David Claughton
Country Breakfast
Take your favourite podcasts and radio with you
Country Breakfast
Take your favourite podcasts and radio with you
Country Breakfast
Take your favourite podcasts and radio with you
Pooley Wines wins Sydney Royal Wine Show as event celebrates 200 years
Lauren Bohane, David Claughton and Michael Condon The winner of the prestigious Sydney Royal Wine Show is a red, but it is not from the regions best known for shiraz. The 2024 Pooley Syrah was judged Best in Show and is produced in Tasmania, a long way from the classic red wine regions of South Australia. Syrah is a variety of shiraz, known for its dark fruit and peppery spice.
Country Breakfast
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Farmers, sporting shooters and gun shops angry about NSW buyback scheme
Emily Middleton, Lucy Thackray and David Claughton Farmers, sporting shooters and gun sellers are reacting angrily to the New South Wales government's buyback scheme. In December, NSW brought in limits of four firearms for most licence holders, and 10 firearms for others, like farmers and sports shooters. The buyback will see those with excess firearms receive up to $1,000 for each weapon from November 2, with the aim of taking 274,000 guns out of circulation.
Country Breakfast
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Court fines Bucca blueberry farmers $100,000 for building an illegal dam
Samuel O'Brien and David Claughton The NSW Land and Environment Court has fined two blueberry farmers $100,000 after they built an illegal dam on their Bucca property north of Coffs Harbour. The Natural Resources Access Regulator (NRAR) took legal action after an investigation into the dams triggered by a report to its hotline.
Program: Bird flu spreads in Australia
Bird flu continues to spread in Australia. Confirmed cases at the time of recording on Friday afternoon have now reached 33 while another 22 birds, including a seagull, are being tested for the H5 N1 strain. The birds have been found in Western Australia, South Australia, New South Wales, Queensland and now Victoria and the Federal Minister for Agriculture Julie Collins has announced that it's no longer feasible to eradicate H5 bird flu in wildlife, based on expert advice.
Program: How nature repair schemes are affecting farming communities
Big polluters and foreign investors are paying a high price to buy farming properties around the country to offset their emissions while nature repair schemes are now paying land holders to store carbon and protect biodiversity. The Federal Government is also in the market to meets its goal to protect 30 per cent of the land for conservation by 2030.
Program: Outback rain but no tourists to see it
It is a pilgrimage for many adventurous travellers - a trip to the outback in a wet year - so why aren't there so few going? In parts of central Australia it has been one of the wettest years on record. Rains have flooded stations and communities and brought relief for farmers affected by drought and it has created one of the outback's biggest spectacles - Australia's largest lake, Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre, which fills when the desert floods. Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre from above. 2025.
New seafood country-of-origin labelling in Australian hospitality venues
Diners biting into their battered fish and chips at a pub or an expensive fish fillet at a restaurant will now know exactly where their meal is coming from. New for seafood come into effect today for all venues and outlets that sell ready-to-eat seafood. Menus and boards at food outlets will need to include a letter next to each seafood item indicating whether it is from Australia (A), imported (I) or mixed (M). Seafood must be labelled as Australian, imported or mixed from July 1, 2026.
WaterNSW's price hike worry farmers as costs increase 40 per cent for some
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WaterNSW's price hike worry farmers as costs increase 40 per cent for some
IPART approves annual water price hike up to 10 per cent until 2030 across NSW. WaterNSW confirms insolvency risks and warns increases are not enough long-term. IPART and WaterNSW say the funding model for water infrastructure needs to be reviewed. The agency that manages water infrastructure in NSW could be in a "death spiral" as farmers confront price hikes that could make irrigating crops and paddocks unaffordable.
Poultry industry concerned but prepared as H5 bird flu detected for the first time
The poultry industry is bracing for the spread of a deadly strain of avian influenza, but is confident the planning has been done to prevent any widespread egg shortages. Two cases of the H5N1 variant of avian influenza have now been confirmed in migratory seabirds that washed up on a remote beach in Western Australia. They are the first suspected Australian cases of a deadly strain of a virus that has killed millions of birds and mammals worldwide.
Program: Boom in regional data centres
Data centres are needed to power artificial intelligence system are they are proliferating around the world, but they need a lot of energy to run and water to cool. Australia has 160 in operation and another 100 planed, mostly in outer metro areas in Sydney and Melbourne, but there are some big projects in regional areas on NSW, SA, Tasmania and the Northern Territory.
Country Breakfast
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The spread of varroa is destroying hives and could impact on food production - ABC listen
As the varroa mite spreads to bees in other states, industry groups in Victoria are warning of a food crisis brought about by a lack of bees. Bee-keepers say they are losing more than half of their hives to varroa, which is increasingly resistant to the main chemicals used to control it. A report released last week suggests the sector, which pollinates a third of the nation's crops, wont have enough hives to do the job.
ABARES report predicts broadacre farm profits will drop by 70 per cent
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ABARES report predicts broadacre farm profits will drop by 70 per cent
The lingering drought and soaring input costs mean there are tough times ahead for the nation's farmers, according to the latest report from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES). Its June quarterly report shows that winter crop production across the nation is forecast to fall by 21 per cent, as the value of agricultural exports shrinks by $7 billion. ABARES executive director David Galeano said farmers would feel the impact.
Mouse plague in WA - ABC listen
The mouse plague has seriously affected rural communities in Western Australia, and mice are turning up in big numbers in other states as well. Farmers have had crops eaten out, seed by seed, by as many as 8,000 mice per hectare in some places. A school has been closed, mice are everywhere, including people's bed, sheds and machinery, while towns are calling for help to deal with the human health risks.
What do we know about how changes to family trusts affect farmers?
Half Australian farms are held in family trusts, so how will farmers be affected by the federal tax overhaul? Farmers use trusts to protect their assets, distribute income within their families and ensure the farm can be passed on to the next generation without incurring a large tax bill. The importance of trusts in managing farm finances has led the federal government to provide an exemption for primary producer income from the new minimum 30 per cent tax on trust income.
NSW gun sales plummet amid national buyback uncertainty
States and territories are facing renewed pressure to buy back guns in the wake of the Bondi massacre, but the industry warns fewer guns are already being sold. An updated national gun control framework and gun buyback scheme were among the recommendations in the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion's interim report by commissioner Virginia Bell.
Supermarkets urged to absorb more price increases from Iran conflict
Justine Longmore, Lauren Bohane and David Claughton Questions are being raised about who pays to ensure Australians have enough food on the table during a global crisis. Supermarkets are still expecting big profits while food insecurity rises and many of the country's farmers struggle to break even. Georgia Schuback, 25, from Port Macquarie shops around between three different supermarkets. "If I didn't do this, we wouldn't have as much food. We wouldn't have as much money," she said.
Supermarkets urged to absorb more price increases from Iran conflict
Questions are being raised about who pays to ensure Australians have enough food on the table during a global crisis. Supermarkets are still expecting big profits while food insecurity rises and many of the country's farmers struggle to break even. Georgia Schuback, 25, from Port Macquarie shops around between three different supermarkets. "If I didn't do this, we wouldn't have as much food. We wouldn't have as much money," she said.
Program: Gas tax debate
What's behind the call for a new tax on gas exports? Corporate giant Shell says they are already paying billions in various taxes and a new one on exports will chill investment needed to bring on more supply for Australia. But proponents say the Australian people are missing out on billions in royalties and the big corporates are getting the resource for free.
Program: What is cobalt and could Australia mine and process it?
You may not have heard much about cobalt, but it is on the list of critical minerals in Australia. It is used to reduce the fire risk in lithium batteries, but is also find it in defence products and robotics. Most of the world's cobalt comes out of the Democratic Republic off Congo, which recently banned exports in order to push the price up, but Australia also has big resource.
Program: Electric trucks could cut Australia's diesel dependence
There's been a lot of talk in the last week about whether Australia's freight sector could go electric. One company is claiming that electric trucks are much cheaper to run, can go faster and travel 480kms on a single charge. But a forestry company that trialled electric trucks has shelved the idea, saying they're unviable to run. David Claughton and Josh Brine have been looking into it.
Sydney Royal Easter Show to go on, despite rising fuel costs
As the old saying goes, the show must go on. Organisers of the iconic Sydney Royal Easter Show have found themselves kicking off this year's event as exhibitors and ride operators deal with the impacts of war in the Middle East, and the subsequence fuel price spike it has caused. Show general manager Murray Wilton said it was a challenging time to be putting on the event. "We understand there is a cost-of-living crisis," he said.
Program: How fair is the EU Fair Trade Deal?
While champagne corks are popping for some Australian companies who won the right to use names like Prosecco, most agricultural groups are disappointed, even devastated, by the outcome. The agreement has been under negotiation for the past eight years, with agricultural access a key sticking point. Wine exporters have won tariff-free exports, which the industry estimates will deliver $14.5 million in savings each year, but red meat exporters and dairy farmers have been heavily disadvantaged.
Risk of vegetable price rise in response to spiralling fuel and fertilizer costs
Michael Condon, David Claughton and Lara Webster The war in the Middle East is already taking a toll on Australian vegetable growers and wholesalers, with consumers next in line to feel the pinch. A snap survey over the last 48 hours by industry group AUSVEG has revealed many growers are cutting back or have stopped planting vegetables. Three quarters of those surveyed reported being critically low on fuel, with diesel prices up 75 per cent and surcharges on freight increasing by 38 per cent.
NSW forestry industry calls for secure future amid interstate shutdowns
Two Australian states have shut down native forestry in the past three years, leaving the NSW industry chasing assurances from the state government it will not be next. The NSW government last year introduced a logging moratorium on 176,000 hectares of state forest earmarked for the proposed Great Koala National Park in north-eastern NSW. The move came almost two years after native forest logging ceased in Western Australia and Victoria.
Biofuel industry awaits Commonwealth support as fuel tensions increase in Middle East
When Terry Woodcroft needs to fill up his trusty Toyota Hilux, he heads straight to the local pub. Not because he's hankering for a pot and a parma, but because the cooking oil from the kitchen is what fills the tank of his converted farm ute. Mr Woodcroft is a retired police officer and hobby farmer who converted his ute about five years ago to run on biofuel, such as vegetable oil.
Program: Scaling up biofuels in Australia
It's been a difficult week for farmers when it comes to fuel and fertiliser prices, but could biofuels produced here in Australia help? The renewable fuels industry gathered in Sydney to discuss ways to scale up the sector to shore up Australia's fuel supply, but there are significant challenges.
Competition and consumer watchdog keeping an eye on soaring fuel prices
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is monitoring increasing fuel prices and sales across Australia as costs soar and supplies tighten. Global oil prices surged to nearly $US120 a barrel on Monday, as the war in the Middle East disrupts shipments through a key shipping lane. Economists have warned inflation could peak above 5 per cent as fuel prices rise, with some bowsers already showing prices of up to $2.59 a litre for diesel in some places.
Big fuel companies restricting deisel supplies and regional communities feeling the pinch - ABC listen
Bulk fuel distributors, fuel retailers and farmers are all reporting shortages of diesel. It's a critical requirement for regional businesses but the war in the Middle East has triggered panic buying, the price is up about 20 per cent in the last week and diesel is in short supply.
Country Breakfast
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The Middle East conflict is having an impact on Australian agriculture and exports - ABC listen
The war in the Middle East is pushing up the cost of shipping globally, restricting access to key commodities from the region like oil, gas and fertilizer. Australian meat exporters are dealing with stranded shipments and cancelled flights, while farmers are wondering about the cost of diesel and if there will be enough fertilizer to plant the next crop.
Outback rain affects pastoral stations in the NT, NSW and QLD and cuts off the east west rail link in SA. - ABC listen
Outback Australia copped a drenching this week as a tropical-low slowly moved through the middle of the continent. Some cattle stations received more than 500mm in just 48 hours, which will help generate a lot of new grass for cattle, but the flood damage to pastoral stations and remote roads is expected to be extensive.
How illegal fishing in far north Queensland was discovered by a wildlife photographer - ABC listen
When a listener reported seeing what looked like a foreign fishing boat within 50 metres of the shore in far north Queensland the ABC Drive Program in the region ran the story. It triggered other reports and soon there were aerial sightings of a flotilla of boats. A successful Border Force campaign to stop illegal fishing in the waters off the Kimberley and Northern Territory inadvertently pushed the problem into Queensland. .
A young woman dies in extreme heat doing a job she loved. - ABC listen
Tiffani Phelps De Wildt was found unresponsive by paramedics on the Paraburdoo-Tom Price Highway, 30 kilometres from the nearest medical centre. She died soon after and paramedics said it was most likely a result of heat stroke. She had been working on horseback mustering cattle, a job she loved to do. She was 27 years old and had lived in Australia for six years and was recently married here.
The Australian wine industry is facing tough times - ABC listen
Australia has built up a reputation for producing high quality wine and in many parts of Australia it's a big part of the economy. Think the Barrossa, Hunter Valley, Coonawarra, Margaret River and many parts of Tasmania. But consumption is falling, growers are struggling and climate change is making it pretty tough for those affected by extreme heat, fires and storms. David Claughton and Eliza Burlage from the ABC's Country Hour have been looking at the future of the industry.
Some NSW farmers say 10 guns are not enough ahead of planned restrictions
Calls for broader exemptions to new gun laws for farmers and sporting shooters in New South Wales are growing. Once the new regulations are finalised, licensed individuals will be limited to a maximum of four firearms, with exemptions for primary producers, who can own up to 10. Ben Emms is a stock and station agent in Central West NSW and his family has hosted a gun club for nearly 100 years. Ben Emms, pictured with his wife Mandy, is a stock and station agent.
Premium beef producers expect to be the main casualty of China's new 55 per cent tariff
Australian cattle farmers producing wagyu and Angus beef are likely to be among the hardest hit by China's 55 per cent tariff on beef exceeding the 205,000-tonne quota. China's global trade restrictions came into effect on January 1 after claims by farmers in that country that beef imports were hurting their profitability. NSW Hunter Valley Angus producer Robert Mackenzie said the 55 per cent tariff would have a detrimental affect on his industry.
Seasonal workers claim unfair bonus cuts and poor conditions on NSW cherry orchard
Seasonal workers at a prominent cherry orchard have accused their employer of exploitation, claiming they were unfairly denied an end-of-season bonus and exposed to squalid living conditions. The workers, who want to remain anonymous to avoid being blacklisted, picked fruit for Hallmark Cherries in central NSW during the summer harvest in late 2024. The ABC has seen 10 written complaints signed by individual workers, and has spoken directly with four of them.
Career change to pub owner and new priest turns heads in rural parish
A pint-sized, pint-pouring granny becomes a social media star and the face of a country pub, as she adjusts from nursing to life behind the bar alongside her daughter. Pauline Harley did not grow up with religion, far from it. She was homeless for six months as a teenager, which has informed her passion now for social justice in regional Queensland. Across remote Australia, hundreds of thousands of wild camels are considered feral pests, with many shot and left to rot.
Turning crops into spirits and rare orchids thriving in old cemeteries
More than 1,000 days is about how long it takes to turn barley into a bottle of whisky. But one Victorian farmer is transforming two more unconventional crops, red wheat and sugar beet, into spirits you might not expect. A historical NSW cemetery is providing crucial habitat for a critically endangered orchid. Conservationists say in rural and urban areas cemeteries often provide protected habitat for rare and endangered plants and animals.
Alternative protein sector expected to triple worldwide by 2032 but struggles for investment
Alternative protein startups say they cannot get the finance they need to establish the industry here, forcing them offshore. A precision fermentation plant is under construction in SA, but industry groups say it is too small for commercial production. Australian startup All G is partnering with a German company to access commercial scale fermentation facilities abroad.
Island community doing golf differently and blossoms turn coffee plantation white
Golf has a reputation for being a bit fancy - it can be exclusive, and expensive associated with rich businessmen and high flyers. But on an island off the coast of Tasmania, there's a community doing golf very differently. Forget the selfie with the pretty purple jacarandas, brilliant yellow sunflowers or canola crops, the brilliant white coffee tree blossom is arguably even more spectacular.
Rare shrub thriving and moving fresh milk in kegs
There are signs a critically endangered plant that grows on a rural property in the NSW Northern Tablelands could have a prosperous future. You've heard of beer kegs and juice stands, what about milk on tap? It's a relatively new product, introduced to Australia about four years ago and now spread around the world. Instead of bottling milk in single use plastics, dairy farmers send out their product in kegs that are then hooked up to taps in cafes, supermarkets and more.
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