History
ABARES was founded on the 21st of August 1945 as the Bureau of Agricultural Economics (BAE) with the preliminary purpose of researching the economic potential of primary industries and their efficiency. Initially, the bureau was established to operate within the Ministry of Post-War Reconstruction and was then transferred into the Ministry for Commerce and Agriculture in August 1946. In 1988, the bureau combined with the Bureau of Mineral Resources to become the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE) which would further widen the field of research to include energy, minerals markets and issues such as climate change. In 2010, ABARE undertook a further merger with the Bureau of Rural Sciences (BRS) with the goal to grant ABARES the capacity to undertake integrated economic, scientific and social science research. In 1952, the bureau began to undertake frequent review and forecasts of farm survey data. Formal and regular assessments including a wider variety of productivity indicators of Australian agriculture began in the 1980s.Organisation Objectives, Visions and Values
ABARES’ objectives as outlined on their website is to: - "Support evidence-based policy making by providing specialist policy-relevant research and advice to decision-makers on key policy challenges facing the agriculture, fisheries, forestry sectors today and into the future. - Develop our capability for integrated research and advice that will forge a stronger future for ABARES as a provider of such products to government, industry and the public. - Promote our research findings through our website, seminars, conferences and other communication media that best meet the needs of our stakeholders. - Manage and develop our people, systems and processes"People
ABARES is under the direct leadership of several federal Ministers which include: In 1948, ABARES had 25 professional staff with university degrees in economics or agricultural economics, and this number grew to 55 in 1954 than to 85 in 1962.Dr Nelson, R. (2018). ''The future of public sector forecasting in Australian agriculture.'' Canberra: ABARES. Retrieved fromData Collection, Processes and Procedures
ABARES collects a broad range of commodity, climate and agricultural data. The data ABARES collects is the chief source of publicly available data for Australian agricultural and resource economics related commodities and industries, and has been described as more accurate in these fields than other organisations. ABARES’ surveys are sometimes collected via face-to-face interviews. Compared with other national agricultural and resource economics data collection agencies, ABARES is considered one of the more reliable and thorough. While ABARES does collate and produce reports exclusively within ABARES, often, ABARES will co-produce reports and documents with industry groups. By working collaboratively, the advice ABARES and the private entity provide will be received more effectively than information provided solely by ABARES or a private entity. ABARES collates three annual agricultural surveys which includes: - The Australian Agricultural and Grazing Industry Survey (AAGIS) - Australian Dairy Industry Survey (ADI) - Murray-Darling Basin Irrigation Survey The Australian Agricultural and Grazing Industry Survey (AAGIS) is a large report compiled by ABARES which assesses broadacre industries on a yearly basis. ABARES determines the target number and types of farms to include in the AAGIS survey. To do this, ABARES collects data on farms that participated in the survey in the previous year (and would like to participate in the current year) and then resample the remaining population to reach the target number and composition. Furthermore, the data collected within the AAGIS survey is split into various zones as to aid consistent data interpretation. The ADI survey covers farms that are engaged in dairying. Australia's Dairy industry is the third largest rural industry behind wheat and beef and has a gross value of $4 billion. The Murray-Darling Basin Irrigation Survey covers a broad range of industries and subindustries. The gross revenue from agriculture in the basin was $13.6 billion in 2000–01, of which $4.6 billion was estimated to be derived from irrigation. Irrigated agriculture is practiced on about 15 000 different farming properties throughout the Basin. The three main industries in this survey include Broadacre, Dairy andPublications
The data collected by ABARES is often used for governmental and private sector consulting. Additionally, the data collected by ABARES has been used by independent researchers on several occasions to assist in accurate and reliable reporting. ABARES also produces many forecasts throughout the year, “ABARES regularly prepares forecasts of area, production, and yields for more than twenty winter and summer crops in each Australian State”. Among the regular forecasts and reports is a weekly national update, the update covers a range of topic including climate data, key issues, commodity information and water usage. Forecasting and modelling was widely used in commodity outlook studies, it wasn't until the 1970s these models were applied to agricultural markets. The expanding of these forecasts and models globally allowed ABARES to dedicate more of their resources to publishing these types of models. The 1980s introduction of the Econometric Model of Australian Broadacre Agriculture (EMABA) was one of the first major forecasting models produced by ABARES. Agricultural forecasts are still regularly published with the aim to provide information on expected prices to help ensure that markets operate fairly, and, identify and form policy responses to emerging issues. Additionally, ABARES publishes data on land usage and land occupation which assists in forecasts and modelling. Through hosting the Annual National Outlook Conference, ABARES has been able to collate annual forecasts of major commodities and quarterly gross values of agricultural production, resources and exports. During the 2018 Banking Royal Commission, ABARES provided a broad range of data from farm surveys and other public resources to assist the investigation of farm indebtedness. The main publication that was used for the background report was the ''Regional farm debt: northern Queensland gulf, south west Queensland and north west New South Wales'' report which was published in December 2014. Additionally, ABARES publish a number of series, including the Australian quarterly forecast report, ''Agricultural commodities'' (ISSN 1839-5619, since September 2011).History of Agricultural commodities report
The ''Agricultural commodities'' title replaced ''Australian commodities: forecasts and issues'' (ISSN 1321-7844, March 1994-June 2011), formerly ''Agriculture and Resources Quarterly'' (ISSN 1032-9722, March 1989-December 1993). ''Agriculture and Resources Quarterly'' originated from the merging of ''Resource Trends'' (ISSN 0818-3619, September 1986-December 1988) and ''Quarterly review of the rural economy'' (ISSN 0156-7446, February 1979-December 1988, previously ''Quarterly review of agricultural economics'' ISSN 0033-5754, January 1948-April/July 1978).Controversy
In February 1998 the Commonwealth Ombudsman produced a report of an investigation into ABARE's external funding of climate change economic modelling.Ombudsman. (1998). ''Report of the investigation into ABARE's External Funding of Climate Change Economic Modelling.'' Canberra: Commonwealth Ombudsman. Retrieved fromSee also
Australian Bureau of StatisticsReferences
External links
* {{Authority control Commonwealth Government agencies of Australia Agricultural organisations based in Australia