A University of Queensland study has found the gum producing crop guar has a bright future if growers start putting more effort into it.

Gross margin analysis by UQ Gatton agribusiness lecturer Kim Bryceson found that a crop of guar at one tonne per hectare would at least equal returns from sorghum at 2t/ha, while the average yield for trial plots of guar in 2004 was 0.3 t/ha.

Ms Bryceson said such low yields were partly due to guar's reputation as a crop that could be grown on marginal land with few inputs. Her research suggested fertilisers and good in crop rainfall were essential for guar, along with other agronomic issues like seed quality and post-plant management of the crop. Phosphorus and zinc were vitally important.

MS Bryceson said strong export potential and the news that a guar processing plant was likely to be built in Dalby were positive signs for the infant industry, as were the crop's benefits as a disease break in rotations and usefulness as a summer forage legume for livestock.

There was a widely held view that current commercial varieties of guar were unsuitable for Queensland conditions.