‘Headwinds’ blow NFF’s $100bn ambition off course

Plans to build agriculture into a $100bn industry will fail unless the government takes action, the National Farmers Federation has warned.

National Farmers' Federation CEO Tony Mahar. Picture; AAP.

Plans to build agriculture into a $100bn industry will fail unless the government takes action on energy policy, internet connectivity and an agricultural visa, the National Farmers Federation has warned.

NFF chief executive Tony Mahar will on Monday unveil a “report card” on progress towards the target it set a year ago, and to which the federal government is committed.

The document says considerable progress has been made, and the report card “celebrates our successes”.

But without further initiatives, the NFF says the value of Australian agriculture will rise from the current drought-affected $59bn to $84bn by the target year of 2030, with a range of “headwinds” preventing the $100bn target being reached.

The report card on what the NFF brands its “2030 Roadmap” calls for the federal government to move on several fronts to overcome this $16bn deficit.

Among the “headwinds”, the NFF says “Australia continues to face a future without a national energy policy”.

Mr Mahar said high-energy costs were “a major factor in global competitiveness” and the NFF needed to know what the government intended to do to reduce them.

The NFF plan says agriculture is reducing its reliance on fossil fuels in favour of biofuels and renewables, with a target of 50 per cent renewable energy on farm by 2030. It says climate change policy “remains fraught”, but governments are expected to agree to a climate change adaptation strategy for agriculture.

The NFF says a shortage of labour, skilled and unskilled, remains a key obstacle in reaching the $100bn tally by 2030. It aims for a 25 per cent increase in the available workforce by 2030, and a doubling in the number of tertiary and vocational agriculture graduates.

“Agriculture lends itself to so many more jobs than people might expect, we are a hi-tech, innovative, consumer-oriented industry,” Mr Mahar said.

The report card says while the federal government has made “significant changes” to working visa and migration programs, a “specific labour solution for agriculture is still outstanding.”

The NFF says another significant roadblock in meeting the 2030 target is patchy regional digital connectivity and while progress is being made, “national leadership is needed to reach full potential”.

Agriculture Minister Bridget McKenzie said the $100bn by 2030 target was achievable, and the NFF report card made some “valuable policy suggestions.”

“On many of these metrics, the government and the NFF are in furious agreement, including the need to solve our workforce bottlenecks, pushing for greater innovation and increasing trade opportunities,” Senator McKenzie said.