Young likely to innovate

YOUNG farmers are leading the charge in agriculture innovation.

The CommAgri Insights survey asked Australian farmers how much innovation opportunity they see across all areas of their operations.

The results show farmers from all age brackets think they can innovate, but those under 45 are more prepared to take the steps necessary to innovate in specific areas of their farms.

“It’s encouraging that such a significant proportion of farmers see innovation opportunity not just in what they produce, but in how they produce it, how they market and how they structure their business,” Commonwealth Bank’s executive general manager regional and agribusiness banking Grant Cairns said.

“Working to maximise innovation across all areas of business is known to contribute to a better return on investment.”

The Agri Insights findings showed 34% believed there was opportunity for innovation in marketing practices.

“I think farmers are willing to capitalise on the Australian brand, they want more transparency and to share the story behind their brands,” Mr Grant said.

He agreed the changing landscape of farmers was driving the trend in innovation.

“We are now seeing more sons and daughters returning to the farm after completing study,” he said.

When asked what actions they would take to enable innovation, younger farmers had a more proactive attitude, and the most popular step towards innovation identified by farmers is research, followed by networking, collaboration and then engaging specialists.

“Research is a good starting point for innovation but there’s also a lot to be gained by working with others to develop ideas,” Mr Cairns says.

“No matter your age or speciality, problem solving is often most potent when you bring together people with different backgrounds, experiences and perspectives.”

Sixty per cent of younger farmers say they will do their own research, compared with 47% of older farmers; while 55% of younger farmers say they will join innovation focused networks compared with 37% of their older counterparts.

More than half of younger farmers (53%) also say they will seek opportunities to collaborate, compared with 37% of older farmers, while 39% of younger farmers say they will engage specialists, compared with 27% of older farmers.

— Grant Cairns Farmers see innovation opportunity...