SOWING THE SEED FOR A BRIGHTER FUTURE

FAR Australia's Research Centres

FAR Australia has collaborations with a number of research partners across Australia with many projects linking basic science with in-field applied research programmes. Whilst universities and state departments provide linkages from the laboratory to the field, FAR Australia provides a number of research centres for the applied field research, interpretation and extension activities, these centres are located across five states, WA, SA, VIC, NSW and Tasmania.

Victoria Crop Technology Centre (Gnarwarre)

This centre is located in Gnarwarre, Victoria and was established in 2020 to host the GRDC’s new Hyper Yielding Crops (HYC) initiative, a four-year investment spanning five states – Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, New South Wales and Western Australia. This project aims to push the economically attainable yield boundaries of wheat, barley and canola and growers are being invited to join the networks and host paddock-scale trials on their properties to enable a “seeing is believing” participatory approach to the research.

WA Crop Technology Centre (Esperance)

The WA Crop Technology Centre was established in 2019 and is located in the Esperance Port zone of WA. The centre currently hosts the GRDC’s High Rainfall Zone (HRZ) Farming Systems project which is led by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development in collaboration with FAR Australia and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) with the objective optimising cropping in the Western and Southern regions. The project is led by Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) in collaboration with Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and FAR Australia.

WA Crop Technology Centre (Albany)

The WA Crop Technology Centre was established in 2019 and is located in the Albany Port zone of WA. The centre currently hosts two research projects – The GRDC’s High Rainfall Zone (HRZ) Farming Systems project and the GRDC’s new Hyper Yielding Crops (HYC) initiative. The HYC Initiative is a four-year investment spanning five states – Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, New South Wales and Western Australia. This project aims to push the economically attainable yield boundaries of wheat, barley and canola and growers are being invited to join the networks and host paddock-scale trials on their properties to enable a “seeing is believing” participatory approach to the research. The HRZ Farming Systems project is led by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development in collaboration with FAR Australia and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) with the objective optimising cropping in the Western and Southern regions.

NSW Crop Technology Centre (Wallendbeen)

This centre is located in Wallendbeen, southern NSW and was established in 2020 to host the GRDC’s new Hyper Yielding Crops (HYC) initiative, a four-year investment spanning five states – Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, New South Wales and Western Australia. This project aims to push the economically attainable yield boundaries of wheat, barley and canola and growers are being invited to join the networks and host paddock-scale trials on their properties to enable a “seeing is believing” participatory approach to the research.

Finley Irrigated Research Centre

The Finley Irrigated Research Centre was established in 2020 to host the GRDC’s three year Optimising Irrigated Grains Project. This project aims to evaluate crop response to agronomic practice across a range of irrigated systems and quantify yield potential in different environments. The irrigated crops being investigated include faba beans, canola, durum, chickpeas and barley with trials established in NSW, SA and Tasmania. The project is a collaboration between Irrigated Cropping Council and FAR Australia.

Tasmania Crop Technology Centre (Hagley)

The Tasmania Crop Technology Centre is located in Hagley, northern Tasmania and was initially set up to showcase the GRDC’s Hyper Yielding Cereals Project trials. The site now hosts GRDC’s new Hyper Yielding Crops initiative, a four-year investment spanning five states – Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, New South Wales and Western Australia. This project aims to push the economically attainable yield boundaries of wheat, barley and canola and growers are being invited to join the networks and host paddock-scale trials on their properties to enable a “seeing is believing” participatory approach to the research.

Disease Management Centre (VIC)

The Disease Management Centre located near Geelong in the southern high rainfall zone of Victoria specialises in independent disease management evaluation covering collaborative work with state departments, universities and industry research projects. The centre aims to develop specific fungal disease situations through a combination of disease inoculum and irrigation, to assist in the development of new products and management strategies.

SA Crop Technology Centre (Millicent)

The SA Crop Technology Centre was established in 2018 and is located in South Eastern SA High Rainfall Zone near Millicent. The centre currently hosts the GRDC’s new Hyper Yielding Crops (HYC) initiative, a four-year investment spanning five states – Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, New South Wales and Western Australia. This project aims to push the economically attainable yield boundaries of wheat, barley and canola and growers are being invited to join the networks and host paddock-scale trials on their properties to enable a “seeing is believing” participatory approach to the research.