AFI Forum
Welcome to the AFI Forum, showcasing what we’re up to now and what we’ve done before.
From the vault:
Published 24 Nov 2020
The AFI has been accelerating positive change by leading the farm policy discussion and promoting policy solutions that maximise the economic and social wellbeing of Australian farmers since 2004. As the policy landscape changes – now more than ever – we are making changes to help us ensure a viable…
Published 1 Aug 2018
The divide has long acted not just as a physical barrier between the thin strip of land to the east and the rest of the country, but also in a figurative sense has been a delineator between the city and the bush. Most of Australia’s agriculture occurs west of the…
Published 1 Jun 2020
This winter edition explores a number of themes in relation to the increasingly difficult environment of policy development in a post-truth era. How is truth established in today’s world, where alternative facts and fake news are blamed by those on every side of every debate for diminishing their ‘truthful’ position?…
Featured content:
Published 26 Feb 2021
Broadacre irrigation in the southern Murray-Darling Basin is set to change dramatically: is this the creative destruction we want? In discussions about the Basin Plan and re-balancing extractive water rights in favour of environmental needs, one key reform has been consistently underestimated in its significant and permanent effect on irrigation…
Published 24 Feb 2021
Innovation is not a buzzword or a box to check on a business plan; it is a vital component for sustainable economic development. The Australian agriculture sector faces a serious and present threat in climate change, which cannot be addressed by incremental adaptation; innovative responses to this challenge are a…
Published 2 Feb 2021
RESEARCH REPORT: Managing farm-related land use conflict in NSW The Australian Farm Institute estimates $20.3 billion can be added to the gross value of agricultural production through digital technology, while the National Farmers’ Federation has identified it as one of the keys to making agriculture a $100 billion industry by…
Published 17 Dec 2020
Five years ago, the Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper noted ‘a fairer go for farm businesses’ as a priority action area. This year’s AFI John Ralph Essay Competition asked respondents to consider whether current competition measures are delivering that promised ‘fair go’. The submissions covered an intriguing range of ideas and…
Published 14 Dec 2020
From Dec 7-11th 2020, the AFI and the Sydney Institute of Agriculture hosted a series of conversations about the future of conservation ag. The online conference is available as a webinar series of 5 x 2-hour videos (10 hours total) – FREE for AFI members and $49.50 for non-members. (Members…
Published 1 Dec 2020
Early in 2020 the Australian Farm Institute undertook a research project on behalf of the National Farmer’s Federation for Phase 1 of the Australian Farm Biodiversity Certification Scheme, which is a component of the Australian Government’s $34 million Agricultural Stewardship package. This project reviewed best practice management standards and collated extensive feedback…
Published 30 Nov 2020
The Federal Government has announced that part of Australia’s strategy to deal with the economic impacts of COVID-19 will be a ‘gas-led recovery’. However, increasing gas production in Australia creates obstacles to the agriculture sector’s economic viability, social cohesion, environmental stewardship and ability to meet sustainability goals.
Published 29 Nov 2020
Over the past few weeks, I’ve had the pleasure of travelling around NSW, and connecting with others further away via Zoom, to speak to farmers, researchers and other agri-industry people about the future of conservation agriculture in Australia. These conversations have been in preparation for our Conservation Agriculture 2030 online…
Published 26 Nov 2020
The production of dairy products is associated with environmental impacts, and these impacts have resulted in calls within the popular media to reduce dairy consumption for the benefit of the environment (e.g. Carrington, 2018; Eating Better, 2020). Impacts of current production are estimated by environmental footprints; the use of environmental…
Published 8 Nov 2020
The AFI hosted an ‘in-conversation’ webinar on competition policy on Thursday 5th November 2020, 12:30–1:30 pm (AEDT), featuring finalists from the 2020 John Ralph Essay Competition, along with Mick Keogh and Richard Heath. Discussions focused on the future direction for Australian agriculture and competitive measures. Panellists included: • Mick Keogh…
Published 27 Aug 2020
“Let the cane fields burn, let the flames rise. Let the politicians and the bankers in the city look up in wonder at the glow in the sky…” – Graeme Connors Although the iconic burning of cane fields is a rarity in most regions today, we may be facing a…
Published 18 Jun 2020
By Teresa Fox and Richard Heath Conservation agriculture will be fundamentally different in 2030 compared to the present day. Farmers must continue to innovate, potentially at higher rates than previously seen, to overcome emerging risks and threats. Are they up for this challenge and will they be operating in a…
Published 10 Jul 2019
Much of the public outrage generated by the Four Corners program ‘Cash Splash’ (which aired on July 8) has been in reaction to the perception of public funds being spent for the sole benefit of large private companies. The program investigated elements of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan (MDBP) and asked…
Published 21 Feb 2019
Almost 20 years after deregulation of the Australian dairy industry, Labor has flagged a potential return to government intervention in the market. If elected in May, a Labor Government will task the ACCC to assess and test the efficacy of a Minimum Farm Gate Milk Price1 and to make recommendations on…
Published 25 Oct 2018
Tomorrow the Federal Government is convening a summit to address the devastating drought currently afflicting Eastern Australia, to unite national efforts in coordinating action to support drought-affected families and communities. January to September rainfall in 2018 has been the second lowest recorded since 1900 for the Murray-Darling Basin, and September…
Published 15 Oct 2018
This week will see a confluence of agricultural, rural and regional events being held in Canberra. These events, including the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Awards Dinner, Farmer of the Year Awards lunch, the AFI Australian Agriculture Roundtable, National Farmers’ Federation Congress and the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation Gala, will bring farmers,…
Published 4 Oct 2018
A social licence is easier to define once lost than when it is in place. The live export industry is very familiar with the disruptive consequences of losing the social licence to operate, and understanding social licence been critical for doing business in the forestry sector for decades. Social licence is…
Published 20 Aug 2018
Last October I wrote about the European Commission vote on extending the registration of glyphosate. While the extension was granted, it has done nothing to diminish the campaigning of vocal community that oppose the use of glyphosate. This community has had their position strengthened by a landmark case in California…
Published 7 Aug 2018
The drought has not happened suddenly, but suddenly it’s mainstream news. I have been asked to do several media interviews in recent weeks and each reporter’s focus has been the effect that the drought might have on grocery prices. Since drought is a recurring feature of Australian agriculture there is precedent…
Published 18 Jul 2018
Australian agriculture has been kicking a lot of goals in the last few years. As the biggest contributor to GDP growth, the farming sector is full of stories of innovation and success. One goal that remains resolutely un-kicked however, is that of workplace safety. There is no way to sugar…
Published 12 Jul 2018
In the world of agriculture Mark Lynas is probably best known for his high-profile change of mind on the issue of GMO’s. Originally an anti-GMO activist, some say he was even the global founder of the anti-GMO movement, Mark is now an advocate for genetic engineering, promoting the potential for…
Published 1 Jun 2018
Much is made of the ‘urban/rural divide’ when discussing agricultural policy, but two digital trends have the potential to close some of the gaps between city and country. The first is the agtech start-up boom, a trend which is bringing mathematicians and venture capitalists to paddocks and farmers into computer…
Published 24 May 2018
AgTech Takeaways – the expanded menu (part 4): In March, I participated in an Austrade-facilitated Australian Agtech Delegation to the US and wrote a blog about my takeaways with four main points of conclusion. Over the next month each of those key points – integrated systems approaches, farming practice adaptation,…
Published 15 May 2018
AgTech Takeaways – the expanded menu (part 3): In March, I participated in an Austrade-facilitated Australian Agtech Delegation to the US and wrote a blog about my takeaways with four main points of conclusion. Over the next month each of those key points – integrated systems approaches, farming practice adaptation,…
Published 10 May 2018
Thanks to an increasingly strong economy delivering better than expected tax receipts, Treasurer Scott Morrison has been able to deliver an election-friendly 2018 budget, including tax cuts and infrastructure spending. Whether you are an individual, business or government, higher levels of income provide more options and opportunities. The trick is…
Published 3 May 2018
AgTech Takeaways – the expanded menu (part 2): In March, I participated in an Austrade-facilitated Australian Agtech Delegation to the US and wrote a blog about my takeaways with four main points of conclusion. Over the next month each of those key points – integrated systems approaches, farming practice adaptation, genomics /…
Published 24 Apr 2018
In March, I participated in an Austrade-facilitated Australian Agtech Delegation to the US and wrote a blog about my takeaways with four main points of conclusion. Over the next month each of those key points – integrated systems approaches, farming practice adaptation, genomics / computational breeding and open data – will…
Published 10 Apr 2018
Let’s be clear: mistreatment of animals is incompatible with the ethics and farming practices of the overwhelming majority of Australian farmers. Any breach of our world-leading animal welfare standards should be investigated and rectified as soon as it is known. But let’s also be clear about the reality of the…
Published 23 Mar 2018
Venture capital funding of agtech is here and it is a weird and confusing place. Ever since the Monsanto acquisition of The Climate Corporation in 2013 there has been a frenzy of activity trying to cash in on the boom that is agtech. Silicon Valley is well and truly in love…
Published 6 Mar 2018
So-called ‘clean meat’ is the latest darling of the stock market in the USA, with major investors putting their money into start-ups like Impossible Foods, Hampton Creek, and MosaMeat. Quite a few commentators and activists have claimed that these developments in alternative proteins signal the end of animal agriculture as…
Published 28 Feb 2018
A lot of feathers have been ruffled in the debate on egg farming. Definitions of ‘free range’ are disputed and reviewed, ‘happy’ eggs command market premiums, cage farmers are targeted by activists. All this is based on the understandable public assumption that chooks living outside cages are intrinsically happier than…
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