“Enabling connected data and improving
data mobility across New Zealand agriculture”
Why we formed
Global agriculture is becoming increasingly digital, and with that comes a growing number of tools, platforms and solutions entering the market. Fragmentation is not a failure of the system; it is an inevitable outcome of innovation and growth.
In some parts of the sector, such as New Zealand’s dairy industry, this fragmentation reached a point where coordination is essential. Leadership from organisations such as Fonterra, alongside leading agritech businesses, is beginning to improve data mobility and enable more connected data across systems, after more than a decade of largely disconnected development.
Other sectors are at an earlier stage. New solutions are emerging rapidly, but with limited coordination or shared approaches to data. Without intervention, these sectors will follow a similar path, where poor data mobility creates friction, slows adoption, and limits the value of innovation.
We formed this working group to get ahead of that curve, to accelerate the cooperation required across the ecosystem, beyond any one organisation or solution. Our role is to bring the right people together to enable connected data and improve data mobility across agriculture in Aotearoa, thereby supporting a more efficient, aligned, and valuable digital future for farmers, growers, and the wider sector.
Purpose
To strengthen the foundations for a more connected, trusted agritech ecosystem by aligning on shared approaches to data mobility and connection that reduce duplication, enable integration, and support scalable innovation.
What we will deliver
- Visibility of initiatives and collaboration opportunities to accelerate progress toward connected data
- A shared view of challenges, principles, and a common language to support connected data across the sector
- Regular working groups to enable collaboration and practical progress on data mobility
- An open-source data definitions registry, supported by a clear operating framework for how definitions are developed and maintained
- Development of agricultural data definitions and standards aligned with international frameworks
- Updated codes of practice for organisations handling farm data
- Representation of agritech organisations in sector-level data discussions
- Clear recommendations and pathways to improve alignment across industry, research and policy