Department of Primary Industries and Regions chief executive Michelle Edge quits role

In an unexplained departure, the chief executive of Department of Primary Industries and Regions has quit.

Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA). chief executive Michelle Edge has stepped down from her position.

Ms Edge’s departure was confirmed in a statement from Premier Steven Marshall on Wednesday, but did not explain why she has left.

The statement credited her response to South Australia’s fruit fly outbreak and leadership of PIRSA through the Covid pandemic.

Outgoing PIRSA boss Michelle Edge. Picture: PIRSA

“I thank Mrs Edge for her service over the past two years, in which she has led the department through unprecedented times during the Covid-19 pandemic,” Mr Marshall said.

Ms Edge’s current deputy, Professor Mehdi Doroudi, will lead the department in a caretaker role while the government recruits a new head.

Before being appointed to the position in April last year, Ms Edge was chief executive of an industry-government partnership organisation for Primary Industries New Zealand.

Prior to her role in New Zealand, she held various positions in Victorian government, and led the Australian Meat Processor Corporation.