Farmers from the MIA have led the way with three named as finalists in this year's Rice Industry Awards.
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The awards, which are co-ordinated by Rice Extension and AgriFutures Australia are about highlighting best practices, innovation and water efficiency.
The finalists are Bilbul's Darren Fiddler, Conargo's Lachlan Bull, Peter and Erin Draper from Leeton and Scott Williams from Murrami.
Murrumi's Scott Williams was named as a finalist for including sub-clover to support prime lambs and rice.
He described using subterranean clover as "fairly old-fashioned".
There's a bacteria on the clover which supports nitrogen in the soil, so as well as providing good feed for sheep, in time it can help reduce the inputs needed to grow rice.
Mr Williams said all things going well it could save roughly 30 per cent on urea costs.
"It provides all the nutrition for sheep and after three years you can provide enough sustenance for rice," he said.
"If you go eight years with clover you can almost go organic."
Mr Williams said he had been studying regenerative agriculture which had lead to planning out crop rotations and grazing patterns with more purpose.
Creating that plan has also meant that Mr Williams' son Carl could take up some of the work.
"Everyone's involved. I can go away on holidays and leave my son in charge. It gives rough guidance of where the sheep can go in the next few months."
Rice is a key part of the enterprise for Peter Draper, however he also rotates with oats, wheat, barley, cotton and trades sheep.
"I was surprised to be chosen as a finalist," Mr Draper said.
"Rice and oats complement each other well, we can plant oats right after rice as there's still moisture in the ground."
He said with rice being under water it helped clear up diseases and weeds. To take advantage of that, the Drapers changed their layouts so rice is planted on beds which also allowed more flexible crop rotation.
"By changing our system to beds we can grow a multitude of different crops, like soybeans, maize and cotton," he said.
"I prefer rice because of its environmental benefits.
"When you have a paddock of rice you see the whole area come to life with insects and migratory birds."
The 2020 SunRice Grower of the Year award will be decided by three judges assessing production and agronomy, water use efficiency, innovation, business management, sustainability, health and safety and community involvement.
"We recognise that to excel in any area of agriculture, farmers need to pay attention to a wide range of aspects of their business, and understand their role in the broader community and environment," Rice Extension co-ordinator Troy Mauger said.
The winner will be announced at the Ricegrower's Association annual conference dinner, with SunRice Grower of the Year field day to be scheduled to showcase the winner's farming practices.
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