Automating Australia’s indoor cropping sectorA new, $6.8M FFS project links vertical farm operators, data solutions providers and seed distributors with crop, sensor and IoT experts to develop tools that monitor and manage crop performance, pests, pathogens and pollination in near-real-time, enabling automated indoor production.
Protected Cropping Australia Conference: wet but well attendedRelentless rain did little to dampen the spirits of the estimated 450 delegates, 40 virtual attendees, 60 exhibitors and large CRC-cohort contingent at this year’s PCA conference in Coffs Harbour.
Setting the course for protected croppingA strategy to provide direction and support for crops grown under shelter in Australia has been launched. Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia David Littleproud said the Australian Protected Cropping Strategy 2021-2030 was a pathway for the industry to develop. “Protected cropping is a very broad term but basically it refers to crops grown within…
CRC report: Scoping the protected cropping sectorThe first in a series of CRC-commissioned reports on this fast-growing horticultural sector investigates target crops and technologies for commercial protected cropping in Australian conditions.
Meet Wen Hu: IoT expertFor UNSW Associate Professor and networked embedded sensor expert Wen Hu, automated farms supplying ‘smart cities’ with premium fresh food are the way of the future. And IoT systems are paving the way to this new, networked reality.
Hort Innovation set to bring high-tech horticulture to Australia’s citiesAustralia’s peak industry body for fruit and vegetable growers has teamed with Sydney-based researchers and agricultural experts to explore the potential social, environmental and economic benefits of intensive indoor urban cropping systems.
2020 CRC Research Showcase round-upOn 2 December 2020, the CRC hosted its first online Research Showcase, highlighting projects approved, in progress and completed under our three Research Programs (RPs) over the CRC's first full year of operation.
UNSW Professor Sami Kara: agrifood supply chains and the ‘bullwhip effect’Inefficiencies in supply chains are exacerbated by disruptions to demand, such as the recent panic buying at supermarkets worldwide following COVID-19-related shutdown announcements. UNSW’s Professor Sami Kara explains how the ‘bullwhip effect’ typically resulting from sudden changes in demand impacts siloed agrifood supply chains – and how taking a systems approach to streamlining supply chains…
Safety, streamlining and scaling up: Sprout Stack pivots to a new normalIt’s business not-quite-as-usual under COVID-19 restrictions, but Sydney-based start-up Sprout Stack is adapting to the new normal with increased hygiene and safety protocols and forward-looking ‘remote’ research.
