The Queensland government has launched its $30 million Sowing the Seeds of Farming Innovation Fund (SSFIF), designed to accelerate agricultural innovation, adoption and productivity across the state’s primary industries.
SSFIF aligns with Primary Industries Prosper 2050, Queensland’s 25-year blueprint to build a better future for primary industries, and its goal to boost primary production output to $30 billion by 2030.
The Queensland government stated the fund will support commercially viable innovation that improves productivity, resilience and profitability across the state’s primary industries, while helping to attract additional private investment.
Queensland Minister for Primary Industries, Tony Perrett, said innovation was critical to the success of the state’s primary industries.
“SSFIF is a game changer for the future of farming because it will deliver the next generation of agtech to boost on-farm productivity and profitability,” said Perrett.
“We’ve heard loud and clear from industry that there's no shortage of innovation in Queensland, but what’s needed is stronger commercialisation pathways, and greater investment in practical technologies and this election commitment delivers that.”
Managed by Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC), SSFIF will invest across the agricultural innovation capital pathway, supporting companies whose technologies, products or services materially enable productivity and value creation within Queensland’s primary industries, including;
- Agtech and digital agriculture
- Sustainability and resilience solutions
- On-farm productivity technologies
- Supply chain and value chain innovation
Queensland Farmers Federation CEO, Jo Sheppard, welcomed the announcement, and said investing in ag tech was essential for keeping the state’s producers competitive, productive and profitable in a rapidly changing global market.
“It’s critical that we move practical innovations out of the lab and into the paddock, where they can deliver real productivity gains for Queensland producers,” said Sheppard.
“By accelerating on‑farm innovation, we strengthen regional economies, support sustainable growth and secure the future of Queensland’s agricultural industry.”
Expressions of interest for businesses interested in exploring how SSFIF can support growth can provide information online at qic.com/Sowing-the-Seeds.
