SA agtech entrepreneurs sowing the seeds for a rich harvest

TRACKING technology to manage seasonal workforces, an electronic logbook for catch information, probes to detect meat quality and satchets to make food last longer - these are just some of the agritech inventions already at home in SA.

Sheep stock. PICTURE: ZOE PHILLIPS

TRACKING technology to manage seasonal workforces, an electronic logbook for catch information, probes to detect meat quality and sachets to make food last longer — these are just some of the agritech inventions already at home in South Australia.

The developers of these high-tech products — AgPick, Deckhand, MEQ Probe and Coolsan — will be part of this year’s Entrepreneurs Week discussion on the opportunities and challenges in the food production and agribusiness sectors.

Communication technologies and their use in connecting rural communities is also on the agenda.

A separate session will discuss harnessing space technology, such as the nanosatellites developed by Myriota, to track stock over vast cattle stations around the country.

One of the organisers, McLaren Vale grape grower Oli Madgett expects technology developers, farmers, and other stakeholders interested in the agriculture space will find opportunities to collaborate on solutions to make agriculture more productive, profitable and sustainable.

AgTech is identified as a key ingredient to take agriculture to a $100 billion industry in Australia by 2030 — with farming being the least digitised industry in the world according to McKinsey & Co.

“There is a lot of innovation taking place in SA which is already making an impact nationally.

“But we could do more by bringing in more ideas and identifying gaps,” said Mr Madgett, who is developing farm monitoring mobile app through his Platfarm business.