It has been almost two years since Agritech New Zealand launched in May 2018.
We are thrilled with what Agritech New Zealand has achieved since then.
Our progress would not be possible without the commitment and involvement from our members, so thank you to everyone for being part of this journey with us.
If you are not already an Agritech New Zealand member, we would love for you to join us.
Kia ora,
We are on the home straight! Yesterday, David Downs and I delivered the final Agritech Industry Transformation Plan (ITP) workshop.
Over 200 people have attended the three workshops focused on ITP delivery in Auckland, Hamilton and Lincoln. After almost nine months of consultation with industry, research and support service stakeholders we are now less than four weeks away from the official launch of the ITP.
At MobileTECH Ag 2020 on 7 April in Rotorua, Ministers Twyford and O’Connor will release the full Plan. Two Ministers. One Plan. I think this confirms the priority the Government is placing on this significant initiative.
During the workshops, I outlined the role that industry would play in the delivery of the six workstreams and three High Impact Projects identified in the Plan. Agritech New Zealand will be establishing formal working groups to map each workstream and High Impact Project. Our members will be able to participate in as many working groups as appropriate. To date, the focus of our work has been on Government consultation however, from April our focus will be on delivery.
Workstream One in the ITP is simply called Global. One of its key actions is ‘Connecting the New Zealand agritech ecosystem to global opportunities’. Last month, we practiced what we preach in Australia during the evokeAG 2020 conference. Over 100 kiwis attended and it’s fair to say that New Zealand’s agritech sector is highly regarded on the other side of the Tasman. This is not hearsay, it’s supported by research! The United States Study Centre at the University of Sydney published a report prior to the conference, Isolated Agtech in Australia? A social network analysis of an innovative sector. It compares the connectivity of New Zealand’s agritech sector with that of Australia and makes an interesting read!
Following the conference, an Australia New Zealand Agritech Council breakfast was held in Melbourne. We were joined by Dame Annette King, the New Zealand High Commissioner to Australia, together with other New Zealand diplomats based in Australia, including representatives from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE), Callaghan Innovation, Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) and the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI). The New Zealand team was mapped with a similar representative group from Australia Inc.
The meeting was designed to identify opportunities for the two countries to collaborate on the global stage. Promoting the region as a significant global agritech hub is a key strategy to attract inward investment and offshore interest. Expect more updates on the Council’s important work in future editions of this newsletter.
Returning to the ITP, Workstream Four is focused on Data Interoperability and Regulations. This is a hugely important topic for the sector to address. Immediately following MobileTECH Ag 2020 on 9 April, a free half-day workshop is being held, Ag Data – Insights and Applications. There are a limited number of seats left, so please reserve your ticket.
As Agritech New Zealand gears up to address some of the significant opportunities now facing the country’s agritech sector, we are beginning the process of holding new elections for our Executive Council. With the recent integration of the Precision Agriculture Association of New Zealand (PAANZ), every member can take part in the election process. Details of how to engage in the process will be sent to all members soon.
Finally, as we prepare to support the delivery of the ITP we are keen to fully engage the widest representation of the sector. Opportunities like this one do not come around too often. If you have not already signed up, membership details can be found here.
I hope you can join us on this journey.
Ngā mihi,
Peter Wren-Hilton
Executive Director
AgriTech New Zealand
Register for the NZ Hi-Tech Awards finalist events on 25 March. Save the date for the awards gala dinner on 22 May in Wellington.
Meet The Digital Council for Aotearoa New Zealand. Register for Future Government 2020 on 25 March in Wellington.
The International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems is 9-13 May in Auckland.
Interested in FinTech? Join FinTechNZ at Opportunities for New Zealand and the United Kingdom on 23 March in Auckland.
Techweek2020 is still accepting event submissions. TW20 runs 18-24 May and this year’s theme is connecting our future. Techweek is a nationwide series of events, showcasing and celebrating our tech innovation. Check out the first #Techweek2020 events.
Meet Hayes Raffle on 19 May in Auckland for Adventures in Tech. Attend Where’s my Jetpack on 21 May in Auckland. Join the Christchurch Startup Weekend, 22-24 May. This year’s Code Camp Christchurch is 23 May.
The 2020 Diversity Awards celebrate the organisations championing diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Enter now.
Join the Edmund Hilary Fellowship’s New Frontiers 2020: Weaving Visions for a New Economy on 11-13 October in Auckland.
Have you seen the AI Forum’s report on AI for Agriculture in New Zealand?
Applications for the 2020 National Fieldays Innovations Awards close 30 April.
The key theme at last week’s evokeAG conference in Melbourne was the power of collaboration.
In New Zealand, this has been a key driver for the past two years. Agritech New Zealand has succeeded in bringing together different key stakeholders from across the agritech ecosystem to create a sector-wide community; a community made up of industry, research, investment and government partners. Over the past 12 months, we have worked together to develop a long-term Agritech Industry Transformation Plan. You can view and download the final draft of this work from the MBIE website here.
This power of sector collaboration is now well understood in Australia and it was great to see the formal launch of the Australian Agritech Association (AAA) earlier this month. Its co-founders are Andrew Coppin, Sarah Nolet, Craig Shapiro, Matthew Pryor and Mike Briers. I’ve worked closely with these folk for a long time and it’s a hugely positive step for New Zealand’s own agritech sector, that the AAA has been established. A strong Aussie agritech sector is helping generate a viable and powerful regional ecosystem. To create global impact, that’s absolutely critical for New Zealand.
For the past nine months, I have been working with the same awesome Aussies to develop a dynamic framework for sector collaboration between Australia and New Zealand. The formal establishment of the Australia New Zealand Agritech Council last September was an important step in this journey. It brought together key ecosystem builders on both sides of the ditch.
This collaborative framework was formally recognised at a meeting organised by the Council on Thursday morning immediately following the evokeAG conference. (Thanks to Austrade for hosting). It has provided a MASSIVE long-term boost to the Council’s vision for the region’s agritech ecosystem.
On the New Zealand side, we were joined by Dame Annette King, the NZ High Commissioner to Australia; Vanessa O’Neill, the NZ Consul General & Trade Commissioner to Victoria; David Downs, the NZ Government agritech taskforce lead; Grant Bryden, Director for Primary Sector Futures at MPI, together with Angela Traill & Mitali Purohit, key representatives from NZTE & Callaghan Innovation. Dame Annette made it clear that she and the NZ Inc. team based in Australia would provide enthusiastic ongoing support for the vision.
On the Australian side, we were joined by Chantal Jackson, Director, Agricultural Innovation and Productivity, Ministry of Agriculture; Tim Lester, Executive Officer of the Council of Rural R&D Corps; Michiel Van Lookeren Campagne, Director of Agriculture and Food at CSIRO; Charlie Thomas, General Manager, Digital & Industry Partnerships, National Farmer’s Federation; John Harvey, Managing Director of AgriFutures Australia, together with leading representatives from a number of Australian states.
The meeting discussed the Council’s vision for identifying opportunities for trans-Tasman collaboration. One of our first key missions is to promote the region to the global investment community. Attracting international capital into the region will help support and scale some of our most promising early stage companies. Both the New Zealand and the Australian government representatives recognised the value of this collaborative approach and it will be tested for the first time next month during the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in San Francisco. This event provides a platform for several Australia New Zealand Agritech Council members to share that vision with leading global investors and agribusinesses. I look forward to joining my Aussie colleagues in the Bay area as we make that pitch.
In his closing remarks on Wednesday at the evokeAG conference, John Harvey, Managing Director of AgriFutures Australia talked about how the first evokeAG conference in 2019 had created a splash, the 2020 version a ripple, and how he wanted the 2021 event to create a wave. Thursday’s Agritech Council meeting was designed to help generate that first wave. It’s scheduled to hit the shores of San Francisco Bay on 17-18 March.
I look forward to updating on the impact it causes.
Over 60 Kiwi agriculture innovators and leaders are now in Melbourne to showcase their technologies at the high-profile evokeAG event, create export and partnership opportunities, and build on New Zealand’s reputation as a leading agricultural innovator.
evokeAG is a two-day international event all about innovation in agriculture, drawing delegates from the entire agriculture ecosystem from across the Asia Pacific region and internationally. The mission is led by Callaghan Innovation in partnership with NZTE, Agritech New Zealand, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) and the Ministry for Primary Industries.
Simon Yarrow, Callaghan Innovation’s Agritech Group Manager, says New Zealand’s startup ecosystem for ‘agritech and new food’ has been ranked in the top 10 globally and there is an opportunity for our agritech to become a multi-billion-dollar sector by 2025 (currently $1.4 billion).
“We’ve got a strong mix of Kiwi startups, larger firms, research institutes, investors, commercialisation experts, and ecosystem connectors joining our mission this year,” says Mr Yarrow. ‘That’s a reflection of New Zealand’s agritech ecosystem being more advanced than most, though still young’.
“We’re seeing real potential for global success in robotics and automation, cloud-based platforms to manage day-to-day tasks, environmentally friendly pesticides and fertilisers, and visual artificial intelligence for animal health.
“But what we don’t have is access to the same level of investment and global channels to market. It’s why our innovators need to go the extra mile to build these global partnerships.”
As well as showcasing their products and services to international agritech leaders, members will be validating their products and strategies in the Australian market, while meeting investors and checking out research institutes and farming operations in the Mildura region.
For as long as there has been farmers, New Zealand has had the ability to turn local agritech Dsolutions into global success stories,” says Vanessa O’Neill, Trade Commissioner. “That means accelerating the growth of agritech innovations from NZ start-ups into scalable, investable and global companies.
“Global partnerships are second nature in New Zealand business. As Australia is New Zealand’s largest two-way trading partner it makes sense to look for opportunities to work together and take our agritech advantages to the rest of the world. Proven agritech innovations from New Zealand, boosted by Australian resources and networks, are a winning combination in global markets.” says O’Neill.
New Zealand speakers include Mitali Purohit (Callaghan Innovation), David Downs (NZTE), Darryn Keiller (Autogrow), Steve Saunders (Robotics Plus) and Dean Tilyard (The Factory).
Organisations joining the 2020 evokeAG mission include:
Agritech innovators
AgriSmart: cloud-based digital agritech company specialising in timesheet & payroll software for Horticulture and Viticulture.
Allied Farmers: NZX listed with a range of agricultural solutions for farmers including the MyLivestock livestock stock trading mobile app and trading platform.
Autogrow Systems: Controlled Environment Agriculture with automation solutions supporting growers in over 40 countries producing more than 100 different crop types.
BumperCrop: precision insights for covered crop farms using automated wireless sensors, intuitive labour management tools and a data management platform.
Cucumber Ltd: sources technology for business challenges, delivering digital solutions for improved insight, decision-making and operational efficiency.
Ecolibrium Biologicals: builds transitional technology for biopesticide pest control, allowing growers to achieve the same outcome as synthetic ag-chem.
Ecrotek: innovative solutions helping beekeepers of all sizes run sustainable, efficient and profitable operations.
Eko360: technology controlling nutrient release and fertilisers for food crops to optimise plant growth, reducing impact on soils, the atmosphere and waterways.
GPS-it: better farming decisions and navigation using the latest aerial mapping technology to produce the most accurate maps available.
Halo Systems (TagIT Technologies): a cloud-based monitoring, controlling and dashboard platform allowing inputs from other company’s technologies.
Instep (a division of Asian Scientific Technologies Ltd): provides a suite of carbon and sustainability programmes to a wide range of Australasian and international businesses.
Iris Data Science: artificial intelligence and machine learning specialists for the agricultural, horticultural and other sectors. Developed sheep facial recognition software.
Livestock Improvement Corporation (LIC): farmer-owned co-operative providing dairy genetics, information technology, herd testing and DNA parentage verification services.
Marama Labs: the business and its flagship product, the CloudSpec, gives winemakers unprecedented access to flavour and colour data of their wines.
Mastaplex: veterinary point-of-care diagnostic tests for bovine mastitis treatment. Mastatest provides dairy farmers and vets an easy, precise and fast mastitis diagnostic.
NuPoint: system providing real time asset and people tracking which is used to provide accurate traceability and proof of placement.
Page Bloomer Associates Ltd: supports sustainable food and fibre production by connecting the primary sector with science and technology providers.
PICMI: technology making hiring seasonal staff easier with technology streamlining the employment process delivering prepared, compliant workers ready to start work.
Radius Robotics: automating most tasks associated with arable crop production. Its robotic polyculture farming system with machine learning reduces soil depletion.
Rezare Systems: helps agribusinesses embrace digital technology, streamline their operations and get closer to farmers and customers.
Robotics Plus: develops and commercialises mechanisation, automation, machine vision, robotic and sensor technologies to address global challenges.
Sparrows: connects growers, distributors and freight forwarders on one platform to enable tracking and monitoring of freight, reducing stock loss and food wastage.
Trust Codes: traceability cloud-based platform helping food and beverage businesses combat product fraud, engage with consumers and comply with regulations.
Zespri: global horticulture marketing company interested in innovations around crop prediction and addressing labour shortages on the orchard and in the supply chain.
Webtools: delivers innovative solutions through a suite of SaaS products and custom development, using cloud-based systems, native applications and IOT.
Agritech researchers
AgResearch: improving pastoral agriculture practices and outcomes with science
Auckland UniServices: helps commercialise intelligent ideas largely out of the University of Auckland, through partnerships with business the primary sector.
Lincoln Agritech: combines leading-edge science and engineering to deliver real solutions for the environment, agriculture (food and fibre) and associated industries.
PlantTech: using cutting-edge artificial intelligence solutions to address scientific challenges in New Zealand’s horticulture industry.
Plant & Food Research: using world-leading science to improve the way its partners grow, fish, harvest and share food – healthy foods with sustainable production systems.
University of Waikato: Robotics and Sensing group develops smart machines, robots and visual sensors for horticulture and agriculture including harvesting and grading.
Agritech investment and support
Agritech New Zealand: a membership-based organisation advancing agritech through advocacy, collaboration, innovation, and missions to global markets.
Callaghan Innovation: NZ’s innovation agency helping big and small frontier firms get ahead with tech, science and commercialisation skills, co-funding, connections and advice.
Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research: a NZ crown research institute working with primary industry to develop science, research and technology solutions for commercial realities.
Ministry for Primary Industries: the NZ Government’s primary sector champion enabling, improving productivity and sustainability, and ensuring safe food production.
Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment: NZ Government department developing and delivering policy, services, advice and regulation to support business.
New Zealand Trade and Enterprise: the NZ Government’s international business development agency, a key partner in supporting our exporters to succeed
NZ National Fieldays Society Inc.: Southern Hemisphere’s largest agricultural event in Hamilton, NZ. A key launch platform for cutting edge technology and innovation.
Sprout: incubator/accelerator for bold agritech businesses and entrepreneurs who move fast, think big, with solutions that reach from farm to fork.
The Agricultural and Marketing Research and Development Trust: an independent charitable trust making targeted investments in agricultural, horticultural and forestry.
WNT Ventures: incubator empowering early-stage frontier tech firms in commercialising deep-tech solutions and ideas, often in agriculture and horticulture.
MEDIA CONTACTS
Callaghan Innovation: Melanie Tuala, + 64 27 609 4502
NZTE: Mitchell Blincoe, + 61 427 801 843
Agritech New Zealand: Peter Wren-Hilton, + 64 21 791 120
The United States Study Centre (USSC) at the University of Sydney has today released details of a joint project between researchers at USSC and LinkedIn that has found that Australia’s agricultural technology (agritech) networks are less dense and less connected to the United States than New Zealand’s.
The following text is taken from this morning’s USSC media release.
‘Using proprietary data from LinkedIn, the research released today uses social network analysis to examine the strength of connections in one of Australia’s emerging high-tech, high-growth industries. Dense networks are an essential component of innovation, and Australia is clearly lagging behind its trans-Tasman neighbour.
Australia is also failing to leverage its relationship with the United States. New Zealand’s smaller agritech industry has denser connections to the US agritech network than Australia’s. The US agritech market is the largest in the world – estimated to be valued at US$10.2 billion. As it accounts for roughly 65 per cent of global agritech investment, connections with the US are vital and Australian agritech is not taking advantage of the strong cultural and economic ties between the two countries as other sectors have.
Compared to Australia, New Zealand does more with less. New Zealand’s smaller agritech network is not only more cohesive and interconnected than its Australian counterpart, but its total number of connections to US networks is on par with Australia’s, despite its smaller market size.
The report offers a number of ways that Australia can work to address these shortfalls in what should be a booming future industry. These include implementing mutually-beneficial initiatives with New Zealand to increase foreign venture capital investment in the region generally.
“Lack of access to funding, customer, supplier or partner networks is one of the often cited barriers facing Australian startups. This research makes an important contribution to understanding the linkages between Australia and the United States in the emerging agritech ecosystem.” said Claire McFarland, Director – Innovation and Entrepreneur Program at USSC’.
You can view the full report at https://www.ussc.edu.au/analysis/isolated-agtech-in-Australia-a-social-network-analysis-of-an-innovative-sector
In September, I joined Australian colleagues for the launch of the Australia New Zealand Agritech Council (www.anzagritech.org) at the ANZLF conference in Auckland. It was no secret that New Zealand’s agritech ecosystem was better developed than Australia’s. Agritech New Zealand is one of the major reasons. By connecting everyone and everything in New Zealand’s agritech ecosystem, we have sought to promote and scale the agritech sector both domestically, but perhaps more importantly, offshore. That has generated visibility in key capital markets in the United States and beyond.
For New Zealand, a poor performing Australia is absolutely not in our best interests. Yep. You read that right. For investors sitting in San Francisco, London or Singapore, they want to see a strongly performing trans-Tasman region. It’s one of the reasons that the ANZ Agritech Council was established back in September. Its mission, which is supported in the recommendations made in today’s USSC report, is to position the region as a strong performing global agritech hub with significant opportunity for inbound venture investment. I strongly endorse this strategy.
Over the next two days, 1,350 delegates in Melbourne attending the evokeAG conference, are going to learn more about the opportunities that the trans-Tasman region offers. It’s been a privilege to sit on the evokeAG steering committee and it continues to be a privilege to work with some awesome Aussies keen to help build that regional hub.
The next 48 hours are going to be truly awesome. To follow the NZ Agritech delegation in Melbourne on Twitter, check out our hashtag @agritech_nz
Welcome to the first AgriTech New Zealand newsletter of 2020 and what a start to the year!
Yesterday, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) published the final draft of the ITP document to their website. You can view and download it here. The recommendations contained in the final draft were due in part to the extensive feedback received from a number of regional industry workshops organised through 2019. This matters. Transformation of the country’s agritech sector will only happen if industry, the research community and the Government work together.
The ITP taskforce and AgriTech New Zealand are now planning three new workshops to share details of the actions and initiatives. Taskforce lead, David Downs, will facilitate the workshops, seeking industry input into how best to deliver the recommendations. I will share some insights of the next phase of the plan’s delivery and how AgriTech New Zealand will be supporting it.
If you want to be part of the Agritech ITP and engage directly, I strongly urge you to register for one of the three FREE workshops on 3 March in Auckland, 9 March in Hamilton and 10 March in Lincoln.
Over the past month, the team has been working hard to build on 2019’s major achievements. The integration of the Precision Agriculture Association of New Zealand (PAANZ) into AgriTech New Zealand is well underway. We have also been developing significant new initiatives to help scale and promote the sector.
Later this month, we will publish our calendar of monthly member events which AgriTech New Zealand will be hosting across the country. In April, we will be releasing a major research report, New Zealand Agritech’s Competitive Advantage. We will also be attending the MobileTECH 2020 conference from 7-8 April in Rotorua as the key Strategic Partner.
Next week, I will be joining over 100 Kiwis travelling to Melbourne for the 2020 evokeAG conference. Building international connections is one of the key themes identified in the ITP document and as a member of the evokeAG steering committee, we have worked hard to build a significant trans-Tasman flavour. Special thanks to AgriFutures Australia for helping facilitate this. It’s also significant that four government agencies have come together to support the New Zealand delegation; Callaghan Innovation, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE), Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) and MBIE.
The evokeAG conference also provides a unique platform for the recently formed Australia New Zealand Agritech Council to bring together industry and government representatives to identify joint opportunities to collaborate on the global stage.
Next month, I am attending the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in San Francisco. This is a key event on the international agritech calendar. I will be joining our partners from Farm2050 and taking the opportunity to meet senior representatives from another key global partner, Western Growers. Deepening these relationships not only provides New Zealand agritech companies with better access to globally connected capital and new market entry channels, they also position our sector as a global thought leader.
It’s been quite a start then to 2020. The team is working to not only accelerate our mission to build on the purpose and opportunity provided by the ITP programme, but also to support New Zealand farmers and growers adopt the agri-technology that will help drive productivity, profitability and sustainability.
We look forward to working with you on this journey.
Wishing you a happy and relaxing festive season.
Ngā mihi,
Peter Wren-Hilton
Executive Director
AgriTech New Zealand
Techweek2020 is now accepting event submissions. TW20 runs 18-24 May and this year’s theme is connecting our future. Techweek is a nationwide series of events, showcasing and celebrating our tech innovation.
Local tech companies are forecast to rapidly expand in 2020. Learn how FinTech can help tackle climate change. In case you missed it, read the AI Forum’s report on AI for Agriculture in New Zealand.
Entries for the NZ Hi-Tech Awards close 2 March. Save the date for the awards gala dinner on 22 May in Wellington. Applications for the 2020 National Fieldays Innovations Awards close 30 April.
Join FinTechNZ and BlockchainNZ on 26 February in Auckland and 27 February in Wellington. Connect with BioTechNZ on 28 February in Auckland.
Save the date for RegTechNZ’s State of the Nation event on 11 March in Auckland. The IoT Alliance meets on 12 March in Wellington.
Apply for Lighting Lab Tourism 2020 by 14 February. Entries for the 2020 KiwiNet Research Commercialisation Awards close 28 February.
Join the Edmund Hilary Fellowship’s New Frontiers Summit, 24-26 February in Auckland. Register for Future Government 2020 on 25 March in Wellington.
The World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit is 17-18 March. The International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems is 9-13 May in Auckland.
Sunday 1 March 2020: With over 100 attendees now registered, Tuesday’s Auckland ITP workshop at the ANZ Centre has officially SOLD OUT. There remain some seats at both the Hamilton (Monday 9 March) and Lincoln (Tuesday 10 March) workshops. You can register for your free place at one of these workshops via the Eventbrite links below.
Yesterday, the Ministry of Business Innovation & Employment published the long-awaited Agritech Industry Transformation Plan (ITP) to its website. This is the final draft. You can view and download a copy here. For the country’s agritech sector, this is massive.
It’s been almost a year since work on the Plan began in earnest. Over that time, Agritech New Zealand has been working closely with the ‘All of Government’ taskforce to ensure that the voice of industry has been heard. I can confidently say that the Plan published yesterday reflects many of the inputs that industry made during the ITP’s extensive consultation process.
The focus then over the past 12 months has been on constructing ‘The Plan’. Now comes the really important task: Preparing for its delivery. To support this process, Agritech New Zealand and the ITP taskforce are hosting three new workshops next month. They are designed to share details of some of the key actions and initiatives contained in the Plan…together with an invitation to the sector to help ensure its delivery. If the New Zealand agritech sector is to scale, then it will be the entrepreneurs, the researchers, the investors, the farmers and growers and the major agribusinesses that will make it happen. Government can support and facilitate this activity but it needs industry to take the lead role. It’s in this spirit that the three workshops next month are being planned.
David Downs, the ITP taskforce lead, will facilitate the workshops, seeking industry input into how best to deliver the Plan’s recommendations. I will share some insights into the next phase of the Plan’s delivery and what support Agritech New Zealand will be providing to help make it happen.
This post is an invitation to everyone connected with the country’s agritech ecosystem to attend and participate. The Plan is not just a piece of paper. It sets out a number of actions and initiatives that we believe will offer massive value to the sector and its different constituent parts. These workshops are FREE to attend and you can register for them right now.
Just click on the venue and date that is best for you and complete the Eventbrite registration form to secure your seat. This is your opportunity to help make a real difference.
David and I very much look forward to meeting you next month.
As we look into our crystal ball, one thing is certain. 2020 will be a very different to 2019.
We have, of course, 2019 to thank for this. It was the year when a number of major foundations were put in place for the scaling and growth of the country’s agritech sector. Some of the key milestones for Agritech New Zealand included:
As I write this post, it’s hard not to think about the plight of Australian farmers and growers in the ongoing bush fire tragedy. It has brought the impact and reality of ‘climate change’ into sharp focus. I believe this is going to be a key theme for New Zealand’s own primary sector producers through 2020 and beyond.
There are a number of emerging global mega themes. Climate change, more extreme weather events, the environmental impact of agricultural production and the license to operate are some of the most significant. I believe that through 2020, these will be some of the key drivers in terms of agritech innovation and development in New Zealand.
Perhaps some of the most important opportunities for supporting the wider farmer and grower community by the country’s agritech sector are to be found in the provisions of the Zero Carbon Act, passed by Parliament in 2019. These set out the impact of an emissions pricing scheme designed to make New Zealand carbon neutral by 2050. In supporting legislation, the Emissions Trading Reform Bill, the primary sector is still set to pay for emissions, but not until 2025. The sector will work with Government to come up with its own on-farm pricing scheme, aiming to reduce emissions in the meantime. A review in 2022 would develop the alternative pricing scheme, access the sector’s progress in reducing emissions and consider the barriers it faces.
Significantly, “If the review finds there isn’t enough progress, the Government can put the agriculture sector into the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) at processor level earlier than 2025”.
From my perspective, this provides two key opportunities for NZ’s wider agritech ecosystem to collaborate together. And here I am looking at four key stakeholder groups: industry, research, producers & government.
The first is to support our primary sector producers by developing the key technologies necessary to reduce emissions and so meet the major targets set out in the legislation. Our farmers and growers have seen enough of the regulation, the media commentary and the negative bile from naysayers. It’s time to come up with the investment and innovation necessary for our key producers to assist them address the issues that they and the rest of the community (urban dwellers included) face around cleaning up our waterways and any other negative environmental impact.
The second, and perhaps much more significant opportunity, is for New Zealand to take a global thought leadership position around climate change and the environmental impact of agricultural production to rapidly scale our major agritech businesses on the international stage. This has to be a core sector goal. It meets the demand and supply side metric. Farmers and growers worldwide need the technology. Our researchers and commercial companies can deliver it.
Over the next 12 months, Agritech New Zealand will be working with the Government’s Agritech Industry Transformation Plan taskforce to accelerate some of these opportunities. They meet both an urgent domestic and a global need.
In 2019, Agritech New Zealand helped develop the emerging multi-stakeholder platform. Over the next 12 months, we have the opportunity to assist execute and deliver.
Welcome to 2020!
Welcome to the final AgriTech New Zealand newsletter of the year. Whilst some might be starting to think about the upcoming festive season, the beach and Christmas fruit mince pies, we seem to have managed to save the best until last!
On 29 November, the Precision Agriculture Association of New Zealand (PAANZ) agreed unanimously at their Annual General Meeting, to disestablish themselves as an incorporated society and join the Agritech New Zealand initiative within the New Zealand Tech Alliance. This is a truly momentous development for New Zealand’s wider agritech sector.
Established in 2013, the core focus of PAANZ has been to connect land users, researchers, commercial companies, Regional Councils, primary industry organisations, rural professionals and students. Its focus has been on increasing the uptake of precision agriculture technologies in land based primary production systems, accessing funding for research and the development of precision agriculture technologies, building capability within the sector and promoting adoption of precision agriculture through industry events, symposiums and field days.
This core focus will be 100 percent maintained as a working group within the Agritech New Zealand initiative. It brings both the supply and demand side of agritech together. Promoting the adoption of agritech on New Zealand farms and orchards perfectly complements Agritech New Zealand’s traditional mission to grow and scale the sector. From a personal perspective, I would like to thank Graeme Muller, CEO of NZTech and Roger Robson-Williams and Brendan O’Connell, Chair and Vice-Chair respectively of PAANZ, for the background discussions that led to this decision. Also, to Kenneth Irons and Sophie Rebbeck, both members of the PAANZ National Committee who have been working with the Agritech New Zealand Executive Council over the past few months.
As we look to 2020, by bringing the two organisations together, industry will have much stronger, united and coordinated role to play in supporting the execution and delivery of the Government’s Industry Transformation Plan (ITP) for the agritech sector.
I plan to share the outcome of the recent cabinet meeting that discussed the Plan with Agritech New Zealand and PAANZ members shortly. My expectation is that in the first quarter of 2020, we will see considerable opportunity for members to engage with this process.
Looking ahead, there is no shortage of activity already locked in for early 2020. A large delegation of New Zealand agritech entrepreneurs, researchers and support agencies are heading over to Melbourne in February for the evokeAG conference. If you have not already booked a spot, you can find more details at www.evokeag.com.
At the end of February, we will be releasing our first major research report on New Zealand Agritech’s Competitive Advantage. It will contain a series of recommendations designed to assist policy makers and regulators look at ways of accelerating the growth of New Zealand’s agritech sector.
In March, another group will be heading to San Francisco for the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit. It’s a key date in the global calendar as an estimated 1500 delegates from around the world meet to discuss some of the most disruptive technologies transforming the global food system.
Back home, MobileTECH is hosting its 2020 conference in Rotorua from 7-8 April. Agritech New Zealand is the event’s Strategic Partner and you can view the event’s latest event announcements here.
Finally, applications for the 2020 National Fieldays Innovations are now open. Fieldays Innovations provides a global platform for creative problem solvers to showcase their innovation to the primary sector.
That’s just about it for 2019! It’s been a fantastic year for the sector and it’s been an honour for Agritech New Zealand to have been a part of it. Next year looks even more hectic (surely that’s not possible – Ed) as we embark on bringing some of the key actions and initiatives from the ITP to market. We look forward to working with you to make this happen.
Wishing you a happy and relaxing festive season.
Ngā mihi,
Peter Wren-Hilton
Executive Director
Agritech New Zealand
In local news, Kiwi farmers will be the first to breed low methane sheep as Beef and Lamb New Zealand has added low methane production to the list of traits breeders can target when choosing rams. There’s also been more discussion on reducing enteric methane through productivity gains.
A new genetically modified corn produces up to 10 percent more than similar types, while CRISPR has produced rice plants that are resistant to blight. In other news, researchers in the USA have used genome editing to breed hornless cattle.
The New Zealand Hi-Tech Trust is seeking a trustee to join its board. Expressions of interest close on 20 December.
Entries for the NZ Hi-Tech Awards are now open. Save the date for the 2020 awards gala dinner on 22 May in Wellington.
A new AI Forum report predicts up to $6.4 billion of economic benefits for New Zealand by 2035 from AI-driven labour efficiencies. Discover how AI is transforming agriculture.
Meet our TechWomen, learn how they kick started their careers and what they do on the job. Watch the #TechWomenNZ online series here.
Register for Hack Aotearoa and MobileTECH Ag 2020. Register for early bird tickets for Future Government 2020 on 25 March in Wellington.
Attend evokeAg, 18-19 February, 2020 in Melbourne. The World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit returns to San Francisco March 17-18, 2020.
At Friday’s Precision Agriculture Association of NZ (PAANZ) AGM, members voted unanimously to join the Agritech New Zealand initiative within the NZ Tech Alliance.
This is a truly momentous moment for New Zealand’s rapidly expanding agritech sector. By bringing New Zealand’s two key agritech ecosystem organisations together, we cannot only work together to scale the sector globally, we can also develop new strategies to accelerate the adoption of critical tech on New Zealand farms and orchards.
Over the coming weeks, we will be publishing more information about just what this means for the sector and how industry, research and government can better engage. From a personal perspective, I would like to thank Graeme Muller, CEO of NZTech and Roger Robson-Williams and Brendan O’Connell, Chair and Vice-Chair respectively of PAANZ, for the background discussions that have led to this decision. Also to Kenneth Irons and Sophie Rebbeck, both members of the PAANZ National Committee who have been working with the Agritech New Zealand Executive Council.
With the New Zealand cabinet decisions around the recommended Agritech Industry Transformation Plan expected later this month, Friday’s decision at the PAANZ AGM to sign the resolution to join the Agritech New Zealand initiative provides industry with an amazing new opportunity to execute and deliver on that plan.
2020 is already looking like the breakthrough year for New Zealand’s agritech sector.
Kia ora readers,
I’m writing this newsletter during perhaps one of the most significant weeks in Agritech New Zealand’s history.
Next week, the New Zealand cabinet will be reviewing the recommendations of the All of Government Agritech Taskforce as part of its Industry Transformation Plan (ITP). As recently reported in our monthly newsletters, we have been working closely with the Taskforce as its principal industry interface.
Later today, I’ll be emailing more than 400 delegates who attended the nationwide consultation workshops with a summary of the outcomes. It’s this summary which has influenced the Taskforce recommendations to cabinet. Thank you to everyone who contributed during these workshops, your inputs were invaluable. So what’s next? Implementation.
The Taskforce will follow this initial phase of discovery and recommendation with a list of the actions they believe can deliver the best outcomes for the sector. I will publish an ITP Special newsletter which will outline these actions, together with a call to action for Agritech New Zealand members. It remains a key ambition of the ITP programme that where possible, it is industry led. Agritech New Zealand will be doing everything we can, to ensure that the sector plays its full role in supporting the implementation.
I expect to witness some of this spirit at today’s Blinc Innovation Hub event, Climate Smart Food Production at the New Zealand Agricultural Show. I’m spending a couple of days in Canterbury meeting members and discussing some of the exciting opportunities we are setting up in 2020. Later in the month, I’ll be meeting more members in the Hawkes Bay as well as attending the Callaghan Innovation led Robotics and Automation workshop in Napier on 27 November.
Looking ahead to 2020, a significant date in my diary is the evokeAG conference, 18-19 February. More than 100 New Zealand agritech folk are expected to attend the conference in Melbourne. As a member of the evokeAG steering committee, I have seen how evokeAG has increasing amounts of trans-Tasman content. A number of New Zealand speakers will be presenting on the plenary stage and at breakout sessions and it’s great to see New Zealand Government agencies come together to promote New Zealand’s presence, led by Callaghan Innovation. Please register your interest and qualify for discounted tickets and a free pre-Mission workshop.
Another key upcoming agritech event is MobileTECH 2020, 7-8 April in Rotorua. We have partnered with the conference and super early bird rates are now available.
Although we are still a few weeks away from the annual year end break, it’s not too early to reflect on just some of what has been achieved over the past 12 months. Some of the key highlights for me include;
To everyone who has helped build and support this programme of work, a massive thanks. Next year promises to be awesome, as both industry and Government collaborate to build a significant platform for sector growth. If you would like to be involved in our 2020 programme and are not already a member of Agritech New Zealand, you can check out how to join here.
We look forward to working with you.
Ngā mihi,
Peter Wren-Hilton
Executive Director
Agritech New Zealand
In local news, local tech exports have grown by 10 percent to $12.1 billion. Read the annual TIN 100 report highlights here.
Meet Flying Kiwis and young achievers at the NZ Hi-Tech Awards alumni event on 27 November in Auckland. Also, 3 December in Wellington and 4 December in Christchurch.
Attend the IoT Waikato Tech Meetup on 18 November in Hamilton.
Empower our next generation of environmental innovators. Applications #cprize2019 close 8 December.
Learn how we can secure local business against the next generation of cyber attack. In case you missed it, read the Digital Skills Hui post-event briefing paper.
Register to attend evening sessions on the Xero Small Business Roadshow touring now until 5 December. No registration required for daytime drop-in sessions. Find your location here.
Discover how AI is transforming agriculture and healthcare. These reports are part of the AI Forum’s research series; Towards Our Intelligent Future.
Meet our TechWomen, learn how they kick started their careers and what they do on the job. Watch the new #TechWomenNZ online series here.
Access your 10 percent member discount for Advancing Digital IT and Law and Advancing Women in Technical Industries and Roles, 25 November in Auckland.
Attend evokeAg, 18-19 February, 2020 in Melbourne. The World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit returns to San Francisco March 17-18, 2020.
Yesterday, I posted a piece that talked about New Zealand agritech’s role in assisting New Zealand farmers create their own emissions pricing and testing regime. This comes off the back of the government’s announcement last week that New Zealand will be the first nation in the world to fully fold agriculture into an emissions pricing scheme, with a comprehensive price on greenhouse gases introduced by 2025.
This is a major move and one that provides New Zealand’s agritech sector with the opportunity to take a global leadership role. As I said in yesterday’s post, consumers around the world are becoming more sensitive towards climate change and the size of agriculture’s carbon footprint. The New Zealand farming organisations & representatives who worked with government to facilitate last’ week’s announcement are fully aware of this. And so are New Zealand farmers on the ground.
This is not however just a New Zealand issue. It’s one that affects the whole world. By becoming the first nation in the world to fully fold agriculture into an emissions pricing scheme, this provides the country with a massive opportunity. Some of the first placeholders are already in place.
Working with Farm2050, Agritech New Zealand looks forward to facilitating a three-year nutrients initiative that will see disruptive nutrient technologies tested and benchmarked in New Zealand. By running field trials in different locations from Northland to the Waikato, Hawkes Bay to Taranaki and the Canterbury plains to Southland, we will be able to analyse the application and measurement of different nutrient-focused solutions that will not only provide insights into their impact on plant yield, but also their mitigation effect against negative environmental impact. By bringing international solutions to New Zealand, our own domestic agritech sector will be able to learn, compare and then compete.
As part of this process, the all of government agritech taskforce is working with Agritech New Zealand to recommend actions and initiatives that support these deliverables. Thinking big is driving a lot of this discussion and this means viewing major issues such as climate change and the carbon footprint from a global perspective. If we can address these challenges in New Zealand, then we have every opportunity to export that knowledge and technology to the rest of the world.
For New Zealand farmers and growers, this is great news. I’ve watched them get bagged from some sections of the media over the past year and for the vast majority of these hardworking folk, the criticism is largely unjustified. Over the past few months, I’ve also seen some of the personal toll that this has taken on farmers I know. My simple message is that you are not on your own and that there are a very large number of people in New Zealand’s agritech sector working on the technologies and innovations that can help address some of the key environmental challenges that we all face.
Perhaps a bit more personal than most of my posts, but it’s important to put things into perspective. New Zealand’s farmers and growers continue to be the backbone of much of our economy. I detect a real desire from both industry and government to tackle some of the key environmental challenges we face, together. Whilst much of the recent focus has been on regulation and the cost of implementing this, I believe it’s time to start looking at the amazing innovation and technology coming out of New Zealand’s agritech sector that will help industry reach this major milestone by 2025.
With the correct mindset in place, this will happen.
It is this fantastic opportunity should be driving the current discussion.
