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Preparing for seasonal outcomes

September is often the point where the season starts to become clearer. Across much of South Australia, there is good reason for greater confidence, with strong crop and pasture growth, generally good livestock condition and positive lambing outcomes. But our conversations with clients are also showing why a good season does not necessarily mean an immediate financial recovery.

Many businesses are carrying debt, depleted working capital and supplier liabilities from several difficult seasons. Grain prices remain relatively low, input costs are high, and frost, disease and locust activity remain risks as crops move towards harvest. For livestock producers, improved feed availability and strong prices are positive, although rebuilding numbers after destocking can be costly.

In the Northern Territory, conditions are moving into the build-up. Mango harvest is beginning, horticultural businesses are balancing production volumes against relatively weak pricing, inflated fuel prices and higher transport and input costs. The large fuel load following the wet season is also contributing to increased bushfire risk, while cattle prices and demand remain strong.

What we’re hearing from clients

One of the strongest themes we are hearing from our clients is uncertainty about what the coming months will actually mean financially.

For many cropping businesses, attention has shifted to what the crop will return after harvest costs, debt and outstanding liabilities are taken into account. Banks and creditors are becoming more demanding, while some Adelaide Plains growers are also having to manage waterlogging, crop disease and storm impacts alongside existing financial pressures.  

Wine grape growers continue to face limited markets, low pricing and difficult decisions around vineyard viability. The South Australian Government has recently announced a $109 million Wine Industry Transition and Growth Package to support the sector through ongoing industry adjustment, including transition loans, diversification support and investment in market growth. For growers considering what this may mean for their own business, understanding their financial position remains an important starting point.

For commercial fishers, the algal bloom continues to have a direct impact on income, with some facing reduced or no income, depleted savings and growing pressure from banks and creditors. The effects are also being felt more broadly across coastal communities, including small businesses connected to tourism, recreational fishing and other water-based activities.

We are also conscious of uncertainty in the Upper Spencer Gulf following the announcement that efforts to restart the Whyalla Steelworks blast furnace have been unsuccessful. Developments of this scale will have flow-on effects for local contractors, suppliers, retailers and other small businesses, particularly where income or customer demand may change.

More broadly, our Small Business Financial Counsellors continue to see cashflow pressure, ATO and creditor debt, rising operating costs and reduced customer spending. These pressures reinforce the value of reviewing cashflow early and understanding what different scenarios could mean for the months ahead.

Planning for more than one outcome

What information do you actually have today? What does your cashflow look like if production and prices meet expectations? Have you updated your budgeting to reflect changing input costs, such as fuel? What changes if yield falls, prices soften, customer demand changes or an unexpected cost arrives?

It is also worth looking beyond the next income event. What payments will fall due afterwards? What conversations are coming up with your bank, suppliers or creditors? What needs greater clarity before you make your next decision?

Planning for a poorer outcome does not mean expecting one. It means giving yourself more time to consider your options if circumstances change.

How we can help

When the outlook is uncertain, having a clear picture of where things stand can make the next decision easier. Our Rural and Small Business Financial Counsellors can work alongside you to understand potential impacts on your financial position, test different scenarios, prepare for conversations with banks and creditors, and work through the options available.

For South Australian landowners navigating mining, exploration, quarrying or renewable energy developments, our Landowner Information Service can help clarify the process, rights and responsibilities.

For farming, fishing and rural families experiencing financial hardship, the RBS Relief Fund provides practical assistance with essential needs such as groceries and fuel, helping ease some of the immediate household pressure while longer-term financial decisions are being worked through.

You do not need to wait until the season is finished or a situation becomes urgent. An early conversation can give you more time to understand your position and prepare for what may be ahead.

A first phone call to RBS is simply a chance to talk through what is happening and what support might be useful. Our services are free, independent and confidential.

Contact Rural Business Support on FREECALL 1800 836 211 to make an appointment with a Financial Counsellor.

Small and family businesses financially impacted by the Whyalla Steelworks blast furnace closure can now access free, confidential and independent support through Rural Business Support.

Our Small Business Financial Counsellors can work alongside business owners to understand their current financial position, identify immediate priorities, explore their options and develop a practical plan for what comes next. Support can include cash flow and debt management, business viability and recovery planning, exploring opportunities to restructure or diversify, and ongoing case management.

Importantly, businesses do not need to be direct suppliers or contractors to the Whyalla Steelworks to be eligible. Support is available to eligible Whyalla small and family-owned businesses experiencing reduced turnover, loss or reduction of contracts, delayed payments, supply-chain changes or other financial impacts associated with the broader economic uncertainty and transition surrounding the Whyalla Steelworks.

The earlier a business seeks support, the more options there may be available.

If you are a business owner who may benefit from support, or you work with, advise or know a Whyalla business experiencing financial pressure, we encourage you to get in touch or share this information.

FREE CALL 1800 836 211 or email enquiries@ruralbusinesssupport.org.au to make an appointment with a Financial Counsellor.

Navigating financial pressure in the wine industry

Free, impartial information for landowners navigating land access

Approached about exploration, mining or a renewable energy development on your land? Understanding the process, your rights and responsibilities can help you prepare for what comes next.

Rural Business Support’s Landowner Information Service (LIS) provides free, independent and impartial information to South Australian landowners, farmers and regional communities dealing with resource and renewable energy developments, including mining, quarrying, hydrogen, solar, wind and battery storage.

A key part of the service is helping landowners feel informed and confident to participate in land access negotiations with mineral and renewable energy resource companies. LIS Officers can explain relevant legislation, notices and agreement-making processes in plain English, help you find reliable information and prepare for important conversations.

Whether you’ve received a Notice of Entry, been contacted about access to your land or simply want to better understand a proposed development in your area, LIS can help you understand what’s involved before making decisions.

Commercial leasing resources for SA small businesses

Dust off the boots. We’re bringing back the B&S… with a little more polish.

Twenty years of Rural Business Support calls for one big night.

This November, we’re taking a walk down memory lane and giving the good old B&S Ball a grown-up makeover. Think ball gowns and dinner jackets, boots and Akubras, great South Australian food and wine, old stories, questionable photos, live music and a dance floor made for reliving a few glory days.

But behind the nostalgia is something much bigger.

The RB&S Charity Ball will celebrate 20 years of RBS standing alongside rural people, while raising funds for the RBS Relief Fund, helping us be ready to respond when drought, fire, flood or the next unexpected challenge puts rural families under pressure.

And what better day to celebrate the people at the heart of our rural communities than National Agriculture Day, this year recognising Our Farmers. Our Future.

20 years. One big night. And maybe a few stories that are better left at the B&S.

Friday 20 November 2026 | Ridley Centre, Adelaide Showground

SAVE THE DATE: More details coming soon…

Want to get involved?

Sponsorship and partnership opportunities are now open.

Contact Mon Saunders, Communications & Philanthropy Manager, on 0413 313 350 or m.saunders@ruralbusinesssupport.org.au to find out how you can be part of the night.

Want to connect with RBS? Our team will be attending the following events:

Founded in 2006, Rural Business Support (RBS) is an organisation committed to building a profitable, sustainable and resilient rural sector by supporting businesses, farmers, landowners and communities in rural, regional and remote South Australia and the Northern Territory.

Our programs and services are free, independent and confidential for eligible clients.

FREECALL 1800 836 211

enquiries@ruralbusinesssupport.org.au

www.ruralbusinesssupport.org.au