Harnessing ‘curious Australian farming approach’ is our agtech’s competitive advantage

Australia’s climate is hot and dry, wet and temperamental.

It’s in this environment that farmers are producing some of the best and most sought-after beef in the world. They’re growing crops with greater yields using less water, they’re trialing forage varieties that result in significant live weight gains, while also measuring their carbon emissions and planning on how to reduce them.

I take my hat off to our producers.Never have they had so many demands on them from the consumer, banks, and environmentalists – all while competing with natural characteristics of farming in this country.

Many of Australia’s farming operations are in outback and remote locations, for some it’s a couple of days on motorbike to fix a series of fences or watering points, or a plane ride to check a paddock. When you’re out on these properties, it’s easy to feel removed from the global ecosystem in which all Australian agriculture exists.

But our livelihoods as farmers, or those who work with farmers, are tied to the wider agricultural landscape.

I see a distinct power imbalance between those who produce food and fibre and the institutions and bodies that govern it.

This is resulting in ideology-based decisions and poor policy that’s against the interests of agriculture.

For example, the decision to ban live sheep exports has caused a tide of negative impacts on one of Australia’s oldest industries and most respected industries.

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The way we use land and natural capital is increasingly subject to red and green tape, while multi-generational farmland has been sacrificed for transmission lines that will erode the productivity and the aesthetic value of regional and rural Australia.

Farmers are also still battling for the right to repair their own agricultural machinery without fear of having warranties voided.

Global agtech ecosystem dominated by large companies who drive the agenda

There’s also a power imbalance in agtech, where the ecosystem is dominated by large companies who drive the agenda.

Investment in agrifood tech in the Americas was equal to US$ 6.1 billion or 39 per cent of global funding in 2023.

This dwarfs the investment in Australia and New Zealand at just US $253 million, or less than a quarter of the US$ 1.4 billion raised that year in China.

We must use platforms like evoke^AG. to inspire tactics to remain competitive and to grow Australia’s presence on the global agtech stage.

Our advantage is not size and scale, but a resilience and a curious Australian farming approach, hardened by decades of producing food and fibre in one of the most environmentally challenging landscapes on Earth.

We need to focus on creating points of difference, harnessing our uniqueness to compete and respond on a global and national level.

The Australian farming sector needs solutions that fit our own unique challenges and operating environment.

Elders staff at evoke^AG. 2025.

This is where Elders has been for generations and where we will continue to be, long into the future. We have a long legacy of working with farmers to solve unique challenges and will always advocate for the interests of regional and rural Australia and agriculture.

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The agtech sector must use the resources at our disposal, leverage connections and adopt a nuanced and agile mindset, so that we can improve efficiency and productivity of our farm sector.

Elders was the Platinum Partner for AgriFutures evoke^AG. 2025 on 18-19 February in Brisbane, Queensland and have committed to supporting the event through to 2026. CEO and Managing Director Mark Allison took to the stage on Day 1, delivering his opening remarks ahead of an action-packed, two-day program.