About 250 leaders from across Australia’s agricultural supply chain are in Canberra today for the National Farmers’ Federation’s biennial Leaders’ Summit, a deliberately convened national conversation about the future of farming.
Held at Gandel Hall at the National Gallery of Australia, the sold-out Summit brings together farmers, ministers, diplomats, economists, retailers, banks, supply chain businesses, policy leaders, regional advocates and emerging leaders under the theme The National Table.
NFF President Hamish McIntyre said the theme was drawn from the kitchen table conversations that sit at the heart of every farm business, the place where plans are made, problems are sorted and decisions about the future are tested against practical reality.
“At our kitchen table, nothing stays theoretical for long,” Mr McIntyre said. “A disruption to international shipping can mean the fuel and fertiliser doesn’t arrive in time. A decision made in another country can change the price we receive for cattle or cotton. And a regulation written in Canberra can change what we are able to do in a paddock thousands of kilometres away.”
Mr McIntyre said the Summit was designed to ensure agriculture was part of national conversations before decisions were made, not after they had already landed back at the farm gate.
“More than ever, what happens in geopolitics reaches the farm gate, as do decisions about land, water, energy, roads, ports, supply chains, workforce and regulation.
“The question of whether agriculture has a seat at the table matters now more than ever.”
Today’s program has been built around the national priorities increasingly defining agriculture’s operating environment. Sessions will examine how the sector grows through uncertainty; Australia’s place in a more contested world; the future of productive land as energy, housing, infrastructure and environmental priorities collide; and the changing expectations around food security and consumer trust.
The program includes Agriculture Minister Julie Collins, Shadow Agriculture Minister Darren Chester, Governor-General Sam Mostyn in conversation with NFF CEO Michael Guerin, Assistant Minister Andrew Leigh, Canada’s Deputy High Commissioner Carly Volkes, DFAT’s Cathy Raper, ASPI’s Dr John Coyne, and leaders from Woolworths, Commonwealth Bank, Nutrien, AgriFutures, the Minerals Council of Australia, local government and the farm sector.
“We will hear from people within and outside agriculture. We will agree with some points of view and disagree with others. That is a good thing,” Mr McIntyre said.
“This is not about a talkfest. It is about listening closely, asking harder questions, challenging our own assumptions and working out which conversations agriculture needs to be part of as Australia makes decisions about the next decade.”
The Summit comes as Australian agriculture marks a major national milestone, farm production reaching $101.4 billion and surpassing the NFF’s 2030 Roadmap target four years early.
The full text of Mr McIntyre’s speech is available here.
The full Summit program is available here.
Photographs will be made available here as they are received.
The day will close with practical reflections from farmers, industry and government before leaders continue the conversation at Parliament House tonight, where the NFF will host its $100 billion industry celebration with the Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, the Leader of the Opposition Angus Taylor and over 300 industry and parliamentary representatives.