SSAA NSW

10 Sporting Shooters Association of Australia (NSW) Inc. SSAA NSW Connects Field Days 2016 Robots to pick fruit, drones to survey crops and satellites that drive monster machines. If you attended any of this year's action-packed Field Day events around New South Wales, it's been predicted that fully automated farms will be a reality within fi ve years. But are these what farmers really want? SSAA NSW attended three of the biggest events on the State's agricultural calendar in 2016: The Commonwealth Bank AgQuip Field Days in Gunnedah, the Henty Machinery Field Days and the Australian National Field Days in Orange. And when it comes to technology, it seems the tech industry is experiencing a boom in adoption by farmers all across the State. Attracting over 200,000 people, on show at all three events were some of the most incredible high-tech features of what's become commonplace jargon within the farming industry – precision agriculture: air and soil sensors, crop detectors, equipment telematics, livestock biometrics, and the ultimate: agricultural robots! Otherwise known as agbots, they're used to automate agricultural processes such as harvesting, fruit picking, ploughing, soil maintenance, weeding, planting, and irrigation. But SSAA NSW members needn't be worried for there are some things agbots simply can't replace as evidenced by the number of enquiries received about the SSAA Farmer Assist program. Developed to enable farmers with wildlife management issues to have the option of seeking assistance from SSAA members through a specially- designed online portal, it peaked the interest of many landowners keen to explore the service and sign up. It was the same for recreational hunters making enquiries too – eager to learn more about applying for hunting opportunities on agricultural and grazing properties where there's a pest problem. It's proof these events served as the perfect platform for SSAA NSW to connect with and explain the program to a wider catchment of members and farmers. Farmer Assist was just one of many services SSAA NSW promoted at this year's Field Days. Representatives from SSAA Insurance Brokers were on hand to meet with both members and clients to discuss any insurance needs in a casual and friendly environment. SSAA NSW staff were also present to answer any questions regarding information about the Game Licensing Unit's General (G) and Restricted (R) Licences as well as hunting in State forests. And with SSAA NSW safe shooting courses also staged across all three events, more than 100 participants graduated with certifi cates while over 40 hunters also completed their assessment to obtain an R-Licence. Backed by a strong mix of adult and junior memberships sold, it's all been part of SSAA NSW's aim to build greater community awareness and acceptance of the shooting sports as well as improved understanding of recreational hunting as an important part of the conservation and pest management toolkit. What also saw SSAA NSW bulldoze every event in the popularity stakes was its fully-licensed 10-metre Mobile Air Rifl e Range being on-hand to introduce people to the SSAA NSW Connects

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