What’s happening?
Young canegrowers Dylan and Sarah Wedel have taken a big step in Queensland’s sugarcane country.
At just 21 years of age, they bought their first 45-hectare sugarcane farm at Victoria Plains, about 30 minutes from Mackay.
They achieved this with a First Start Loan from the Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority (QRIDA).
“At the time Sarah and I were about 21. We’d managed to save up a bit of a deposit and the First Start Loan was instrumental for us being able to get into farming,” Dylan said.
Why it matters?
The Wedels’ story shows how QRIDA’s First Start Loan can help young producers overcome barriers like limited experience and small deposits. It also highlights how new entrants can build a sustainable farming business in a competitive market.
Local Impact
Their farm lies in the heart of Queensland’s sugarcane region. It is part of an industry with deep local roots. Dylan said, “I’d grown up on a farm with cattle. Cane farming has been in my family, but it hadn’t been something that I’d been involved in directly.”
The couple inspected several farms before making the purchase. “We had a look around at a few of the farms in the area and thought this might be something we could have a go at,” Dylan said.
Before farming, they both worked in the mining industry. “Sarah and I were both working in the mines at the time and we were looking for an investment opportunity,” Dylan said. Sarah added, “Dylan had a very thorough decision-making process to decide which farm we would buy. Because it was an investment, we had to make sure that it was going to work out in our favour.”
By the numbers
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QRIDA’s First Start Loan offers up to $2 million to help new primary producers.
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Dylan and Sarah’s first purchase was a 45-hectare sugarcane farm at Victoria Plains.
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They are now working on buying a neighbouring block to reach 100 hectares.
Zoom In
Dylan said commercial lenders were hesitant because they had little farming experience or a large deposit. “The First Start Loan allowed us to overcome those barriers,” he said.
They sought advice before buying. “We met with our QRIDA Regional Area Manager early on before we purchased a property, ran some scenarios past them, talked about what it is that QRIDA was looking for, or not looking for, in a property that they were willing to contribute finance towards,” Dylan explained.
Dylan said the manager was helpful and understood the market. “We worked closely with our QRIDA Regional Area Manager, who understood the local market and was familiar with the properties we were considering,” he said.
Sarah added, “We exchanged a lot of emails and had several meetings, which really helped clarify the process and set realistic goals.”
The questions they faced during the process gave them confidence. Sarah said, “They were the same kind of questions your parents might have like, ‘Have you got the right idea?’, ‘Is this financially viable?’, ‘Is the decision-making sound?’.”
Dylan added, “Like any application process, it took time, and we had to put some effort into it, but it was contributing to what we wanted to achieve.”
“It was tricky too because we hadn’t come from a cane farming background and that’s where the Regional Area Manager at the time was really helpful, because they knew what some of those numbers should be and what was a reasonable number or how to best present those numbers,” Dylan said.
Zoom Out
The couple has embraced sustainable practices on their farm. “We’ve got a fixed amount of land here and we want to try and make as much money as possible, for as long as possible. We’ve tried to adopt what is considered industry best practice, backed by research,” Dylan said.
“We do fallow cropping, we’re Smart Cane accredited, we’re following what is best practice to try and maximise return,” he said.
Looking ahead, they plan to grow their business. Dylan said, “The big thing is increasing scale with the ultimate goal of being able to become full-time farmers, which we’re working towards slowly. We’re currently going through the process of purchasing a neighbouring block at the moment, which will take us to 100ha. We will continue to expand into the future to get to a size where it’s actually a viable primary production business.”
They also have advice for other young farmers. Dylan said, “If you want to get into farming and you’re not really sure whether you’re ready to go or not, early conversations with QRIDA’s Regional Area Managers are going to be important to be able to give you a bit of guidance in terms of what your timeline is going to be and how far away that potential purchase of your first farm might be.”
What to look for next?
Dylan and Sarah are working on expanding their operation to 100 hectares by purchasing a neighbouring block. They aim to reach a scale that allows them to become full-time farmers while continuing to apply sustainable practices that strengthen the local cane industry.
