Blog

Time to get precise about purpose 

It’s the dilemma of our age. Doing more with less. Or is it doing less with more? Or doing more with more? 

The agriculture industry has never had more knowledge, tech and tools at our disposal, but are we really using it all to our best advantage?  

In the words of John Lennon: 

Everybody's runnin' and no one makes a move 
… everybody's a winner and nothing left to lose. 

Maybe it’s a good problem to have but, producers – already short on time and resources – are scrambling to visualise, optimise and realise anything that can keep them farming with as much ROI as possible.  

This is an industry rife with bright ideas and a ‘give it burl’ attitude to execute them. Farmers can MacGyver up a solution to most on-farm conundrums. Beyond the paddock, we have more agtech solutions mastering astounding tasks at the click of an icon. There is more data around climate phenomena and environmental frameworks to tackle sustainability challenges. Every day there is more automation. More data platforms. More policy announcements. More pilot programs. These are exciting times. 

But sometimes innovation can be a right royal pain. 

You know the feeling. The kids have brought home another device or app that is mandatorily going to “make life easier” And, to be fair, it will - right after we dedicate time we don’t have to look, learn and integrate it. 

Talk about disruption. 

But, when schmick new solutions come neatly packaged with direction and a clear plan for achieving meaningful outcomes, all of a sudden innovation becomes a whole new animal.  

What’s needed is a commitment to getting specific about what we need to succeed.  

If we’re going to invest in technology, learning and tools, we need the return to far outweigh what we had to begin with. If we’re going to invest, we better see stratospheric benefits beyond a few efficiencies, compliance or performative, planet-friendly gains.  

So, time to get precise about purpose.  

Let’s talk about machinery. 

Yes, while it’s true that farmers need tools that fit the operation, not tools that demand the operation reshape itself around them, we need to get real about how to use modern ag equipment for maximum usefulness. 

Do we want to utilise tractors, combine harvesters, balers, slashers and tillage equipment for singular functions or are we making the decision to buy based on the promise of measurable farm efficiencies and profitability? 

We’ve all been justifiably impressed by the selling points. Measurable outcomes like labour savings, improved accuracy, reduced waste and fuel usage, and more yield are the wow-factor benefits of modern-day machinery.  

However, extracting these benefits requires extra commitment long after the contracts have been signed – learning helpful but complex systems, integrating platforms, and navigating patchy regional connectivity.  

This means: 

• Investing in proper operator training 
• Scheduling refresher sessions annually 
• Using dealer agronomy or technical support 
• Benchmarking performance data regularly 

A precision tractor without calibrated data and trained operators is just an expensive conventional tractor. 

Getting precise about taking charge of energy security 

Do we want to be passive about energy – leaving it in the inputs column – a necessary cost designation that is largely outside of our control? Or, is there a way for energy to be used as a strategic lever and for farms to be less at the mercy of fuel price volatility, grid instability, and geopolitical risk? 

Consider the operations critical to business: irrigation, cold storage, grain drying, water supply, dairy systems. What happens to production, output and costs if they are thwarted by fuel hikes or shortages, major power outages or destructive weather events? 

Never before has there been more viable alternatives that boost our resilience and offer added energy security.  

Electrification, renewable energy, monitoring technology that allow us to identify waste. We can take the mechanical bull by the horns with smart pumping, solar generation, precision machinery, data visibility – and this is just the beginning. By integrating systems and hardware, on-farm energy can become a controllable input, a risk management tool – and in some circumstances, a competitive advantage. 

Recently, in NSW, the government’s Renewable Fuel Strategy was created to accelerate the production and use of renewable fuels to drive down emissions and underpin industrial activity in the state. The strategy outlines twenty actions to scale up the state’s renewable fuel industry with up to $170 million in funding for renewable fuel and biomethane production. 

By focusing our energy on how we can leverage energy as measurable, optimisable and partially ownable, we can take a more proactive stance to our own resilience and prosperity.  

What else? 

Think about it, by drilling down on things like input management, seasonal forecasting, succession planning, season-aligned finance, supply chain intelligence and more, we can set our own courses within the ocean of ag innovation at our disposal. 

Yes, we have the technology, what (specifically) do we want to do with it? 

The opportunity in front of Australian agriculture is enormous — but only if innovation lands where it matters.  

In the paddock. 
On the balance sheet. 
In the community. 

The question is whether we are precise enough about its purpose to claim it. 

FutureAg is powering up its free-to-attend conference program with more impact, more insight, and more inspiration. Leveraging its connection with AGRITECHNICA, the world’s leading trade fair for agricultural machinery, FutureAg brings global perspectives and innovations you won’t find anywhere else in Australia. 

Hear from international and local leaders, discover breakthrough technologies, and tackle the challenges shaping farming today and tomorrow. Every session is designed to spark ideas, share solutions, and give you practical tools you can put to work immediately. Fast-paced, thought provoking, and full of fresh perspectives, the FutureAg conference is where bold ideas meet real-world farming. 
 
Conference Agenda to be announced soon, Register for Free Now.

Natalie Green 

Senior Event Program and Partnerships Manager

Hannover Fairs Australia and Asia-Pacific / Deutsche Messe