2016-07-12 - Item 12 - Att 1 - Agriculture and Agricultural Land in Noosa Shire

should also be noted that these figures may not include a number of smaller farming enterprises
earning less than $22,500 per annum, which may represent around one third of growers in the
region. These enterprises tend to be focussed on local value chains, be part-time and be
supplemented by off-farm income.

Average weekly incomes for this sector are lower than most other sectors represented locally and
the Industry Value Added figure is less than 1%.

At June 2014 there were 286 local businesses of the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing Sector. Of
these:

•      232 were non-employing;
•      39 employed between 1 and 4 people;
•      12 employed 5 - 19 people; and
•      3 employed 20-199 people.

The value of a scenic rural landscape including cattle and fruit trees to the tourism sector is
unmeasured but possibly quite significant.


2.4    Land Investment
Property values in Noosa hinterland are considerably higher than regional areas further to the
north and west and land purchase is unachievable for many, particularly younger people.

Land values are influenced by proximity to services and attractions, lifestyle opportunities
available, views and amenity and the style of houses on the block. The more affordable locations
were generally around Federal, Kin Kin, Cootharaba and Cooran. Lake Macdonald, Mt Cooroy and
Ridgewood are generally the more expensive locations.

Appendix C includes a summary of data from property sales between 1 January 2014 and 31
December 2015. As might be expected it revealed that the largest properties (40 hectares and
over) were at the lowest per-hectare cost but still averaging over $9,000/hectare. Medium sized
blocks (between 10 hectares and 40 hectares) increased in per-hectare cost, averaging over
$42,000/hectare. Anything less than 10 hectares in area is significantly affected by the style and
size of the house and other improvements on site. The average price per hectare for blocks
between 5 and 10 hectares was over $88,000 /hectare. Even vacant blocks can be quite
expensive.


2.5    Social Trends
According to the 2011 census a total of 340 employed persons 15 years and over, residing in
Noosa Shire were employed in the industry sector of “Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing”. This
represented less than 1.7% of the local workforce. Fifteen years earlier the 1996 census data
suggest there were 555 persons in the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing sector which represented
over 3.9%. Therefore there has been a fall in numbers and proportion of people employed in
agriculture, forestry and fishing.

In 1996 just over 45% of the 555 persons employed in the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing sector
were aged between 35 and 54 years while just over 30% were 55 years and over. Less than 24%
were 34 years or younger. By the 2011 census the proportion between the ages of 35 and 54
dropped slightly to 43.53% the proportion 55 years and over rose to 45%, while the proportion 34
years and younger dropped to 11.47%. Noticeably in 2011 over 18% were over 65 years and 8
people of between 75 and 84 years stated they were still employed in the sector.



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