iscover 
Despite heavy setbacks, strong commodity prices and resilient land values are supporting confidence across much of the agricultural sector and sustaining appetite for investment.
Heavy rainfall across large areas of northern Queensland has created some of the worst conditions since 2019, with tens of thousands of cattle lost due to widespread flooding.
Southern Australia has also experienced significant weather volatility. Earlier in January, a heatwave affected large parts of Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, and NSW, while bushfires and flooding were reported across parts of Victoria and NSW.
In Queensland, the Fitzroy River – which runs through Rockhampton – is expected to peak at eight metres today (21 January), as the impacts of ex-Tropical Cyclone Koji continue to unfold.
According to Queensland’s Minister for Emergency Management, Kristy McBain, 83 per cent of primary producers have indicated they expect to experience catastrophic or major losses as a result of the flooding.
Luke Radford, director of agricultural brokerage Homestead Agribusiness, said that the rains have been “devastating” for affected farmers.
“The big thing will be just the infrastructure that’s damaged and how long that’s gonna take to rebuild, as well as access, especially from a livestock perspective and being able to get stock out,” Radford told Broker Daily, whose brokerage operates across Queensland and northern NSW.
“2019 had even more significant impacts because of the cold snap afterwards, but there’s certainly big losses this year as well.”
Opportunity in the sector
Despite the recent extreme weather events, sentiment across the agricultural sector remains broadly optimistic.
Radford noted that other regions have benefited from strong rainfall, while rising livestock commodity prices have helped cushion losses in affected areas.
Australian beef prices remain strong, driven by robust demand and a reduced herd in the US. Despite the introduction of tariffs, Australia shipped a record $1.6 billion worth of beef to the US in the three months to the end of September 2025.
“US beef demand is through the roof,” Radford said.
“From a beef, sheep, goat perspective, all markets are sitting really well at the moment. On the back of that, grain growers have had really strong yields this year. We haven’t had input costs this low for a while.
“There’s also confidence in the land values. We’ve already seen this year come out red-hot in the few weeks that we’ve been going. Some of the prices that are already being paid are well above what last year was. So we’re not seeing that slow at all.”
This strong operating environment has helped maintain investment momentum, with many producers looking to expand or upgrade their operations. Broker Daily recently reported that one-third of farmers intend to increase on-farm investment in the coming year, according to a new survey by Rabobank.
Radford added: “From our perspective, our clients are in expansion mode. They’re trying to build economies of scale, making sure they’ve got enough scale behind the engine to make it all profitable and take advantage of these opportunities.”
Lenders are also forecasting steady growth across the agricultural credit market in the year ahead.
Speaking to Broker Daily, a spokesperson for agricultural non-bank lender Thera Ag Finance said that they expect credit market growth in agriculture to remain on trend in the 5–7 per cent range for 2026.
“We continue to see agrifinance demand drift toward relationship-driven lenders that have agrisector expertise,” they said.
“Seasonal volatility and uncertainty remain an ongoing risk to be managed for Australian producers. The recent Victorian bushfires and Queensland floods attest to the challenges that Australia’s food and fibre producers must manage and this makes it all the more important that producers partner with lenders that understand the agricultural landscape.
“Australian agriculture continues to be a positive story by way of productivity gains, sector growth and export competitiveness – there is a lot to be encouraged about.”
Building back
In the short term, many farmers across Australia are focused on recovery and liquidity solutions. Radford said the funding response to weather-related damage needs to be carefully structured to avoid placing additional strain on farm cash flows.
“Farmers are understanding that this is not just a pure working capital fix,” Radford explained.
“Some of this will be a long term investment. So when seeking that funding, it’s about getting the lowest cost funding you can with a longer repayment term, so you’re not suffocating the cash flow of the business.
“For a lot of our guys, it’s really about compartmentalising that capital expenditure, making sure we split that out and fund it separately to the business because it’s not an operating cost, it’s more significant than that.
“We’ve been working with farms to figure out how the business needs to perform and the numbers it needs to hit with that revised debt to make sure that we’re not just eating ourselves into a hole.”
Some lenders have already moved to support affected customers. ANZ, for example, has made emergency funds and temporary accommodation available to eligible customers with home and contents insurance, as reported by Broker Daily sister brand The Adviser.
The Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority (QRIDA) is also offering low-interest loans of up to $250,000 at an interest rate of 2.14 per cent, with borrowers potentially eligible for up to two years of interest-only repayments.
In addition, the Albanese and Crisafulli governments have committed an extra $38 million to disaster recovery initiatives in north-west Queensland. This includes $21.5 million allocated to disaster recovery grants of up to $75,000 for eligible primary producers.
Farmers in the shires of Carpentaria, Cloncurry, Croydon, Flinders, McKinlay, Richmond, and Winton are eligible for the grants, with initial payments of $10,000 available.
A further $5 million investment will expand the region’s Coordinated Emergency Fodder Support Package to $7 million, assisting producers in keeping livestock fed across affected areas.
Radford commented: “Cheaper funding is always going to be helpful, but the key question is how long does it take?
“If the process takes six months, we need money now to get going. What that might mean is funding through two components; getting the quick fix from the bank, but then looking at other options to maybe split out some of that debt.”
[Related: Climate change to dictate property purchases: Aussie]