Growing the Future lecture 2022

Online and in-person event

CSIRO’s annual Growing the Future lecture is a national showcase of how excellent homegrown science is underpinning impact in the agriculture and food sector. This lecture highlights original and bold topics that intersect science and industry.

Gold-standard evidence to support a green image for agriculture

Increasingly we want to know how our food is produced and how much impact it has on the environment. This means farmers and businesses are being required to demonstrate their sustainability credentials.

The science of lifecycle assessment measures impacts, such as greenhouse gas emissions, across the entire production chain, from fertilisers to fuel for farm machinery, from transport to processing. It provides a framework to integrate productivity and sustainability to identify priorities for mitigation, as well as trade-offs. Lifecycle assessment is also important for gaining access to lucrative national and international markets.

In this lecture, we’ll draw on examples from lifecycle assessments for the Australian grains industry, including canola, to show how this area of science is helping Australian agriculture remain competitive, be sustainable and respond to consumer needs.

Speakers include Dr Maartje Sevenster from CSIRO, an expert in quantifying the direct and indirect environmental, social and economic impacts of agriculture, Justin Crosby, Grains Research and Development Corporation’s (GRDC) Head of Industry and Government Relations and crop and sheep merino farmer, Nick Kershaw.

Speakers will draw on work done to demonstrate the comparative greenhouse gas emissions for the Australian grains industry and entry into the European market for Australian canola.