MANY of those who awoke to a grey and wet morning yesterday would have relaxed into a day of sloth, perhaps a lazy breakfast or planning a movie with the family.

But for the winter cereal growers and livestock producers, yesterday was an absolute cracker.

A money-in-the-bank day, according to one NSW Department of Primary Industries representative.

The widespread and heavy falls of rain right across the region will have taken much of the uncertainty out of whether crops will finish, and will provide the farmers with full silos and a good cheque around Christmas time.

So much was riding on these crops. Many growers, especially those further south and west, had planted large amounts of land to wheat only to see it stumble just short of the finish line, when no rain fell.

Wheat prices have been high, not quite as high as last year’s record prices, but substantially higher than average, driven in part by reduced amounts of grain on the world stockpile.

Apart from no rain last spring, many farmers anticipating making a handy earner locked in at the high prices and when the season let them down still had to meet their contractual obligations – in short a fiscal disaster.

On Sunday evening, with most of the Tamworth lookout hills obscured by low cloud, a grey world outside the window also means one of security to a good number of those who live in the region.

Good harvests will flow on to non-farming members of the community, such as machinery dealers and the like.

The recent AgQuip Field Days at Gunnedah reported increased interest in big-ticket items like tractors and seeding machinery – implements that increase efficiency levels and cut costs.

This rain will give those farmers the confidence to make that big investment. With more rain forecast later in the week, one should keep their fingers crossed and let it come.