Tests confirmed the H7N6 subtype of bird flu at a rural chicken farm in the Otago region, Biosecurity New Zealand said in a statement. It is different to the H5N1 strain that has spread globally and raised fears of human transmission.

“Until we’ve cleaned up the situation on this farm, and assuming no other issues pop anywhere else, then we will be able to export again,” Biosecurity and Food Safety Minister Andrew Hoggard told Radio New Zealand after the announcement.

“The incubation period is a maximum of 21 days, so we’ll know at that point what the situation is.”

Biosecurity New Zealand said there were no reports of other sick or dead birds on other poultry farms, and no human health or food safety concerns. It added it was safe to consume thoroughly cooked egg and poultry products.

“We are taking the find seriously … our testing shows it is unrelated to a H7 strain that was identified in Australia earlier this year,” Biosecurity New Zealand deputy director-general Stuart Anderson said in a statement.

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Authorities issued extreme fire danger warnings Sept. 20 for the greater Sydney region, home to more than five million people.

More than 600 firefighters and emergency personnel were battling 68 fires across the southeastern state of New South Wales as of that morning, with 17 uncontained, New South Wales Rural Fire Services said in an update at the time.

Fire danger ratings on the south coast had previously been raised to “catastrophic” due to stronger-than-expected winds.

“It’s the biggest risk we’ve faced since the 2019-20 fire season,” New South Wales Rural Fire Service Commissioner Rob Rogers told U.K.-based media organization Sky News.

Residents of a popular holiday town in the island state of Tasmania were also told late Sept. 19 to move to a safer location due to an uncontrolled bushfire fuelled by strong wind gusts. As of the follow day, there had been no reports of property damage or injuries, though more than 100 people had to sleep in their cars, media reported.

Fire crews have also rushed to conduct hazard-reduction burns in Sydney’s west to prepare for the looming bushfire season, which authorities have said could be the worst since the 2019-20 “Black Summer” fires that destroyed an area the size of Turkey and killed 33 people.

Australia’s last two fire seasons have been quiet compared to 2019-20.

The fires came at the same time as Australian authorities confirmed El Niño, a weather phenomenon typically associated with wildfires and droughts in Australia. The country’s Bureau of Meteorology declared an El Niño Sept. 19.

Australia had held off declaring an El Niño, but has been bracing for a warm and dry southern hemisphere spring and summer. Those patterns come after three years of heavy rains and frequent flooding.

The anticipated dry weather could affect wheat production in Australia, one of the world’s major exporters of the crop. Australian winter wheat harvest is expected to start in November.

“We are already seeing extreme conditions in some parts of the continent, particularly in the duration of heat. We’ve had an extended period of warm and dry weather to start spring,” forecaster Karl Braganza told reporters.

In North America, El Niño has been considered in force since the start of summer. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center (NOAA) declared an El Niño event in June.

The Australian bureau uses different, slightly stricter metrics for declaring El Niño. Its declaration came amid a five-day burst of uncommon spring heat in parts of Australia, and several days well above September normals were also expected after the announcement.

Sydney was on track for a record five consecutive days with maximum temperatures of more than 30 C in September, according to the meteorology bureau.

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Australia on April 11 agreed to temporarily suspend a case at the WTO over China’s anti-dumping and countervailing duties on barley after Beijing said it would hasten its review on tariffs.

It was agreed then by the major commodity trade partners that China would finish the review in three months, with a possible fourth if required.

“China has now requested this one-month extension, which we have agreed to,” a spokesperson for Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Trade Minister Don Farrell said in a statement.

“While we are disappointed China’s review could not be completed within the initial three months — we remain hopeful the impediments will be lifted in the near future.”

China’s move to delay its decision on barley tariffs comes as Canberra seeks to stabilize ties with Beijing and remove trade barriers, after relations soured when Australia called for an inquiry into the origins of COVID-19, angering Beijing.

Diplomatic tensions have eased since the centre-left Labor government returned to power in May 2022. Chinese purchases of Australian coal resumed in January after almost three years, and timber in May, and imports of beef have accelerated.

Farrell visited Beijing in May, the first by an Australian trade minister since 2019, and last month said he expected a “favourable decision” from China, Australia’s biggest trading partner, on barley tariffs.

In 2020, China imposed combined duties of 80.5 per cent on Australian barley for five years, prompting Australia to launch a formal appeal to the WTO, which later set up a dispute settlement panel.

“If the duties are not lifted at the end of the four-month period, Australia will resume the dispute in the WTO,” the government spokesperson said.

— Renju Jose is a Reuters correspondent in Sydney.

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The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) said farm export earnings could total a record US$48 billion for 2022-23. That is up around eight per cent from its previous forecast in June.

Australia’s east coast has been dominated by La Nina, typically associated with increased rainfall, over the last two years. While triggering flooding in several places, the weather pattern has also brought good rains across the eastern wheat belt.

ABARES has forecast wheat production of 32.2 million tonnes and 6.6 million tonnes for canola, just shy of records hit last year. Barley production is expected to total 12.3 million tonnes, the fourth largest on record.

“Winter crop prospects in Australia are looking very promising at the beginning of spring. We’re forecasting a 55.5-million-tonne harvest,” ABARES executive director Jared Greenville said in a statement.

Planting of summer crops is forecast to be well above average for the current season, supported by suitable soil moisture and more land previously left fallow during winter.

The forecast could bring relief after Russia’s war in Ukraine limited shipments from one of the top grain exporting regions. The conflict has tightened global food supplies, sending prices higher and fuelling concerns of a food crisis.

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