Australia's leading agricultural research organisations have pooled their resources in a major push to drive on-farm adoption of research outcomes and returns to farmers.
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Delivered through Hort Innovation and led by specialist consultancy Enablers of Change, the three-year project will coach researchers and extension practitioners to pilot innovative approaches and learn from each other, with the ultimate goal of delivering results across the agriculture sector.
The 10 groups collaborating on the project are: Hort Innovation, Cotton RDC, Fisheries RDC, Grains RDC, Wine Australia, Dairy Australia, AgriFutures, LiveCorp, NSW DPI, and the University of Melbourne's Drought and Innovation Hub.
Hort Innovation chief executive officer Brett Fifield said it was crucial for agricultural research organisations to collaborate on cross-industry priorities such as research adoption.
"That is why we are working with other research and development corporations and investor bodies to ensure that we design our research projects with the end-user front of mind from the outset," Mr Fifield said.
"Where there are common challenges and opportunities to tackle, it just makes sense to work together to amplify our efforts and reduce duplication."
Where there are common challenges and opportunities to tackle, it just makes sense to work together to amplify our efforts and reduce duplication.
- Brett Fifield, Hort Innovation
Mr Fifield said getting research gains into the hands of growers and equipping them to make changes that positively impacted their businesses was a key priority for Hort Innovation and other research organisations.
"With around $160 million invested in research and development, trade and marketing by our organisation alone over the past year, the next step is ensuring that these investments deliver optimum impact on farm and on the bottom line of farm businesses," Mr Fifield said.
"The National Farmers' Federation has set a bold target for the agriculture sector - to exceed $100 billion in value by 2030 - and the horticulture sector has a key role to play in reaching this target.
"Recent research conducted by Hort Innovation shows that the Australian fruit, vegetable, nut, turf and nursery industries are projected to surge by up to 22.5 per cent in combined value from 2020 to 2030, increasing by $4b to $21.8b."
This program is the latest in a strategic drive to build on joint Research and Development Corporation collaboration, with a number of other initiatives currently underway such as the Australian Food & Wine Collaborators.
