This presentation gives a brief introduction of Australian agriculture including strengths and weakness of the Australian agri-food innovation system.

1. Australia’s Agri-food Innovation
Ecosystem
Brian Keating
Canberra Workshop
14th December 2016

2. Aims
 Introduce (very briefly) visitors to Australian
agriculture
 Propose some strengths and weaknesses of
our agri-food innovation system – as a
discussion starter only.
 Not speaking on CSIRO’s behalf …
 Reflections from 40 years in Australian
agricultural R&D

3. The opportunity

4. We live in interesting times ....

5. Over 2 billion emerging
middle class to our north

7. Cause for concern

8. Productivity growth in Australian
agriculture slowing ?
“Productivity isn’t everything, but in the long run it is almost everything”
- Paul Krugman, Nobel Prize winning economist
0
50
100
150
200
250
1970 1980 1990 2000 2010
index,1977-78=100
Agricultural productivity
Broadacre
Cropping
Mixed cropping-livestock
Beef
Sheep
Dairy

9. Australia’s agri-food exports flat,
imports rising ...
Exports
Net Exports
Imports

10. Brazil’s explosive growth as a food
exporter
x 3

11. Technological drivers of
Australian agriculture

12. Looking back – a century of wheat
yield progress
?

13. Current technological opportunities

14. Better adoption of existing technology
IWM
Soil & yield
mapping
DSS risk
mgt
Soil nutrient
testing
VRT
fertiliser
Break
crops
Timely
sow
Soil amel
precision
guidance
Monitor
Soil water
Clean
fallow
SCF
auto-
steer
No-till
Control
traffic
Stubble
retention
VRT other
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
0 20 40 60 80 100
Futurepotialscaleofadoption
Current scale of adoption
Size of bubble = gains in grains productivity In Australia due to
technologies or practices.

15. 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060
Year
Identify and clone
major genes
QTL pyramiding/Genomic
selection
GM – resGene cassettes,
herbicide, nutrient-use
efficiencies, apomictic hybrids
GM - C4 photosynthesis,
frost tolerance
First linked
markers
Expected deployment of biotechnology
in crop breeding

16. A
Soil information from the new National Soil
Grid (A) can be combined with locally (B)
and remotely sensed (C) soil nutrient and
moisture data to give farmers the
information they need to analyse cropping
options.
Farmers can combine this information with
climate data (D) and their own knowledge
(E) to run model scenarios in the Cloud (F).
This interactive system provides easy to
understand farming options analysis (G).
B
C D
F
G
Options
Analysis
Cropping
Inputs
Wheat Variety Scout
Total Nitrogen
Clay Content
Water Holding Capacity
Nhill – Harold’s Paddock (182.2 Ha)
E
D
Wheat Yield (T/Ha)

17. Australia– not the food bowl but
maybe the delicatessen of Asia?

18. Australia’s agri-food innovation
imperative

19. Our economy-wide innovation track
record is not good ....
10, 81 13, 66 11, 12
Global Rank : Innovation Inputs, Innovation Output Efficiency
Australia NetherlandsNew Zealand

20. 100 years of evolution of a national
agri-food innovation system
Advisory Council of Science and Industry, 16 Nov 1917

21. The traditional view of Australia’s
agri-food innovation system

22. An abbreviated history …
Pre
1916
•State Departments of Agriculture
•Some Uni Agriculture Professors
1916 -
1949
•CSIR (and predecessors) coordinate national system
•States and “Sandstone” Uni’s active
1949 –
1985
•Rapid growth in CSIRO and State agencies
•Industry funds directed to R&D institutions (at programmatic level)
1990’s
•RDCs emerge (now 15), CRC’s emerge, More Uni’s engage in Ag R&D
•States exit agricultural extension and squeeze R&D
•Private sector advisory services emerge (in most industries)
1992
-2016
• RDC’s grow from project funding at margin to funding at core
• CSIRO funding plateaux/decline but external funds “hold the line”
• ACIAR commences
• Various attempts to coordinate national ag research agenda (PISC/AGSOC)
• Federal Departments set up a range of custom-built R&D Programs
• CRC’s start to run out of momentum in agriculture, funding severely
constrained, high transaction costs
• Some highlights of public-private partnerships delivering sustained economic
and environmental performance (eg Cotton)

23. Some strengths of the Australian agri-
food innovation system
 Continuing strengths in metrics of scientific publication.
 Rural Research & Development Corporations (RDCs) [and
historically rural industry CRCs]
 Private sector advisory services (often growing out State
based extension services)
 CSIRO [ca 30% agri-food or closely related] – globally
significant in scale and structure
 A suite of strong Universities in the agri-food domain
 ACIAR – linking Australian agricultural R&D to the
developing world

24. Some possible weaknesses of the
Australian agri-food innovation system
 Limited data and understanding on how the “system” is
structured and functions.
 Locked into historical structures and approaches and limited
openness to explore improved functionality. Most incentives
drive “local optimisation”.
 Commodity RDC structures works against cross-cutting
opportunities and value chain approaches.
 Social forces in RDC model can work against high-impact
“tailored” solutions and novel public-private partnerships.
 Over-emphasis with “on-farm productivity” rather than
whole of value chain profitability and marketability.
 Second wave of post State-based extension needs to be
invented.

25. Some possible weaknesses of the
Australian agri-food innovation system
con’t.
 University sector has grown in significance but incentives
remain largely around scientific publication.
 Political drivers promote sub-scale and fragmented
initiatives that add to transaction costs.
 “Leverage game” taken to extremes that destroy overall
system functionality.
 Long-term plateau/decline in public investment in science.
 Small domestic market and “branch office” status restricts
private sector investment.
 Clear leadership often lacking at the government level
(Commonwealth and State) and industry level (regions,
States, National, industry components, on-farm/off-farm).

26. Some reflection on how we got to
where we are …
 A commodity exporting ag economy (rather that a value add processing
economy) [Note: Domestic market growing and subject to open
competition]
 A “science centric” innovation system based on a tradition of public
science investment (in the national interest). Well funded from 50’s to
80’s but declining support since then.
 An “on-farm” focus on adapting crops/livestock/technologies and
practices to Australian conditions, with some unique features (poor soils,
climate variability).
 Since the early 1990’s, introduction of the RDCs to aid coordination and
focus R&D on industry needs. Initially a funder at the margin but never
designed to be a central funder that leverages the bulk of the system.
 CSIRO has returned to its foundations to focus on national priorities
requiring an “at scale/multi-disciplinary” response – “Innovation
Catalyst” aspiration.
 In 21st Century we find a different world
 Australian agri-food businesses have never had an opportunity of the same
significance as the current developments in Asia.
 Markets, knowledge, agri-business are more global in nature and we face
global scale challenges

27. “Innovation happens when the ideas and
resources of different organisations connect
effectively. Systems are defined by their
connections, and innovation systems link
businesses with one another and with research
organisations and government.
Australia's innovation system is disconnected.”
Mark Dodgson , Professor of Innovation Studies, University of
Queensland Business School https://vimeo.com/44224654
One view - Innovation Ecosystem

28. “Innovation Ecosystem” view
Adapted from A. Hall (2012) Partnerships in agricultural innovation - Who puts them together and are they
enough? In OECD Conference on Improving Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation systems
Technology
triggers
Market triggers
Social triggers
Environmental
triggers
Research
Organisations
Farm
Enterprises
Agri value
chain actors
Markets and
Consumers
“Go-between”
Organisations
Protocols
Enabling Govt. Policy
Environment
Innovations of
economic,
environmental
or social
significance
New capacity to
innovate

29. Thankyou
Brian Keating
Brian.Keating@csiro.au