Agribusiness buzz in brief

A bottle of Penfolds China Trial 521 blended cabernet sauvignon and marselan red wine will retail for about $150, while another locally made Penfolds red, launched last year, sells for $50.

The new pricier line, although still considered a trial series, will be included in the latest Penfolds' Collection, which includes wines made under the Penfolds label from Treasury Wine Estates' vineyards in France, the US and Australia.

The Chinese product was sourced from grapes in northern central China's Ningxia Province and Yunnan Province in the south.

Although Australian wine imports are effectively banned in China, TWE has been exporting from its US and French wineries to replace some of its lost Australian market share.

Meanwhile, TWE appointed a new company secretary, Alexandra Lorenzi, to replace Kristen Gray who stepped down last month, although Ms Lorenzi is on maternity leave, so her job will be temporarily covered by Chistine Harman.

US quick service restaurant chain, Wendy's, has teamed up with the big Flynn Restaurant Group with plans to start building the first of about 200 sites in Australia in 2025.

Flynn is the world's largest food franchise group and already owns Pizza Hut in Australia.

Wendy's, which previously made a short foray into the local market with its burger chain in the 1980s, said the decision to return followed overwhelming interest from a one-day pop-up site in Sydney in 2021.

International president and chief development officer at Wendy's Company, Abigail Pringle, said Australia was a strategic market for long-term growth.

Flynn Restaurant Group's Ron Bellamy believed the Wendy's brand and partnership had significant untapped potential outside the US and would be a great fit for the savvy Australian consumer.

French barley malting giant, Malteries Soufflet, has received approval from another overseas competition regulator for its proposed $1.5 billion takeover of Australia's United Malt Group.

The UK Competition and Market Authority confirmed it has no questions in respect of the proposed transaction and does not intend to do any public review of the local impact of the transaction.

United Malt owns four prominent malt processing plants in Britain and grain storage facilities.

The planned acquisition, confirmed last month, has also quickly received a tick of approval from Australian and Canadian competition regulators.

Agricultural property trust group, Rural Funds Management, has hinted it will be reporting a solid valuation performance when its full-year results for 2022-23 are released on August 24.

The publicly listed manager of the Rural Funds Group has had a net increase in its asset valuations in the almond, cattle, cropping macadamia and vineyard sectors of about $72 million, of 19 cents a RFF unit.

The valuation applies to $677m, or 42 per cent of the funds' total assets independently valued in the second half of the past financial year.

All estimates will be subject to a full end of year audit.

Expanding South Australian-based shellfish farmer, Yumbah Aquaculture, has bought Australia's biggest mussel production and processing business, Eyre Peninsula Seafoods.

Initially backed by Victorian farming and agribusiness investors and medical technology rich lister, Anthony Hall, Yumbah was best known as a big abalone producer and exporter, but the mussel business will boost turnover by about a third, with about 2600 tonnes of new product annually.

It will now have mussel operations in SA and Victoria, and abalone farms in Victoria, SA and Tasmania and is Australia's largest oyster spat producer, with hatcheries in SA and Tasmania supplying farms in SA, NSW and Tasmania.

Yumba has its sights set on being Australia's major shellfish farming business.

International property marketing group CBRE has appointed agribusiness professionals John Harrison and Angus Shaw to new Pacific leadership roles.

Mr Harrison, originally from a family cropping and grazing property in South Australia's Murray Mallee region, will lead CBRE's agribusiness capital market team.

He has had 11 years in rural property and leadership roles.

Mr Shaw will run CBRE's agribusiness valuation and advisory services business following an extensive real estate advisory career spanning two decades.

He joined CBRE two years ago with experience in the energy and resource markets and a background as a rural and agribusiness valuer.

CBRE employs 75 agribusiness professionals in key gateway markets in Australia, New Zealand, Europe, North America, South America, and the UK.

Beef Australia has confirmed two more principal partners for Beef2024 - banking group, Westpac, and agricultural technology player, Farmbot.

Westpac has continued its longtime sponsorship with a commitment for the next two Beef events in Rockhampton.

"Westpac has been supporting Beef Australia events since our inaugural event in 1988", said Beef Australia chief executive officer, Simon Irwin.

The bank has supported the property tours program, the Graeme Acton Beef Connections program, and one of Beef's "all-time favourite social events", the Westpac High Tea.

With a strong focus on tech, innovation and carbon solutions at Beef2024, this new partnership with Farmbot, signified Beef Australia's commitment to promoting sustainable farming and technological solutions to drive efficiency and productivity in the livestock sector.

Mr Irwin said Farmbot's goal to empower graziers and farmers with innovative tools to help them to meet modern agriculture's challenges was "a perfect synergy with the Beef2024 program".

Applications for evokeAg's Future Young Leaders program will close on September 4.

The program offers five emerging leaders the opportunity to showcase their ideas, innovation, or research to an international audience in Perth at evokeAg on February 20 and 21.

In its fourth year, the program aims to build the capabilities of emerging leaders from across Oceania and Asia who are dedicated to agriculture and its value chains.

It recognises young industry leaders' contributions to food, fibre and fuel production systems, providing them with support systems, networks, and connections to thrive in their careers.

Individuals of all backgrounds, locations, regardless of whether they have roots in regional Australia or a agricultural background, are urged to apply if aged between 18 and 30 with innovative ideas or research involving the agrifood tech sector.