ELDERS increasing focus on horticulture has been given a boost with the appointment of Roop Sandhu as a horticultural specialist within the Thomas Elder Consulting (TEC) team.
TEC is a tailored consulting service aimed at long-term, sustainable farm profitability.
Mr Sandhu will be responsible for agronomy consulting, farm performance analysis and benchmarking, conducting feasibility studies for horticulture.
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He will also be advising on climate risk assessment and adaptation plans for farms.
Elders head of technical services, Graham Page, said the appointment was part of the company's broadening of its horticulture offerings.
"Roop is a valuable addition to the Thomas Elder Consulting team, bringing extensive agronomy experience," Mr Page said.
"Roop grew up on his family's farm in Punjab, India, producing citrus and mangoes. This experience has helped develop his passion for farming, and led him to pursue his interest in contributing to the sector's success."
Mr Sandhu completed a degree of Agricultural Sciences at Latrobe University, and later returned to study a Masters of Agribusiness and Law.
A Chartered Agriculturalist (MAIA Cag) and former treasurer of Crop Consultants Queensland (CCQ), Mr Sandhu's expertise has seen him optimising a variety of high value fruit and nut crops.
He said his aim was to continue to build an understanding of economic and government policy, and its impacts on the Australian agriculture industry.
"I am passionate about educating farmers on the role Integrated crop management and climate mmart solutions can play to enhance all aspects of a production system," Mr Sandhu said.
"There are significant opportunities for growers to leverage the available technologies to gain a competitive edge.
"I hope to help farmers best utilise the tools already available."
