About the program
The Farms of the Future program will support primary producers within five target regions, comprised of the following 11 local government areas (LGAs):
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Armidale
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Ballina, Byron and Lismore
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Carrathool, Griffith and Leeton
- Moree Plains and Narrabri
- Orange and Cabonne
The program targets primary producers from NSW’s four highest grossing agricultural sectors: cotton, grains, livestock and horticultural (tree crops and vines).
Click to enlarge: Farms of the Future - map of target LGAs (PDF 129.19KB)
Objectives
Farms of the Future aims to create agricultural thought leaders and exemplar primary production businesses by supporting farmers to integrate technology to boost their productivity, increase market competitiveness and improve resource management.
The program is part of the Future Ready Regions strategy and seeks to:
- Improve the digital capability and skills of farming businesses and their workforce to enable greater awareness and adoption of digital technologies
- Develop evidence of tangible productivity and efficiency gains as a result of the improved on-farm connectivity
- Accelerate the uptake of agricultural Internet of Things (IoT) devices to support increased productivity, job creation, competitiveness and the sustainable use of resources in the agriculture sector
- Collaborate with the Agtech industry to accelerate the adoption of innovative technologies supported by connectivity solutions
- Support collaboration across local, State and Commonwealth Government programs, as well as across industry and the community.
The program follows a successful pilot on three farms in Blayney, Narromine and Coonamble that showcased the benefits and opportunities of Agtech in commercial farming environments.
Program structure
The expanded $48 million Farms of the Future program has two focus areas:
Extension and capacity building
To build farmers' knowledge and increase digital confidence using IoT monitoring devices and other on-farm connectivity solutions
Agtech catalogue
A resource showcasing Agtech and connectivity solutions, to support farmers researching new agricultural technologies
Updates and more information
Farms of the Future is committed to working with regional communities, farmers and industries, enabling them to become more self-reliant and better prepared for the impacts of extreme weather events and other economic shocks.
For more information and to subscribe to program updates:
- Visit: Farms of the Future on the Department of Primary Industries website
- Email: FotF@dpi.nsw.gov.au.
Contact us
For more information and updates about digital connectivity projects underway in regional NSW, contact us and a member of our team will be in touch shortly.