How do we supercharge farming innovation?

Australian farmers are known for making decisions carefully. In an industry that generated $101 billion gross production value for the Australian economy in 2025/26, weighing risk against opportunity is part of doing business. But the results of our latest Farms in Focus survey suggest farmers are embracing change with greater confidence than many might expect.

Recently, the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University released the Farms in Focus Report 2026, produced in partnership with CommBank, and supported by the National Farmers Federation and the Australian Farm Institute. Researchers found that 40–50% of Australian farmers are adopting innovative approaches to their farm management today.

Examples of these approaches include:

• Rotational grazing
• Multi-species pastures
• Crop rotations
• Variable-rate input usage
• Lower-methane livestock management practices
• On-farm renewable energy
• Biofertiliser use
• Variable-rate spraying and/or fertilisation
• Water-saving irrigation.

The context to this innovation is that half of the farmers surveyed expect profitability to remain stable over the next five years, and a quarter see their profit outlook declining, driven by rising input costs and the effects of extreme weather events. In contrast, two-thirds of farmers expect a positive return on investment on their new approaches.

As many farmers respond to the current challenging conditions with innovation, the research suggests other producers would adapt quicker if they had greater clarity around information, processes and evidence of returns. This will allow them to innovate at a greater pace, says Professor Michael Hiscox, Clarence Dillon Professor of International Affairs, Harvard University.

“The challenges of reporting documentation and the complexity or legal requirements of formal schemes are high barriers to farmers doing those new things,” said Hiscox during a recent CommBank Farms in Focus webinar. 

“The challenges of reporting documentation and the complexity in the legal requirements associated with [innovation] are high barriers to farmers doing those new things.”
– Professor Michael Hiscox, Clarence Dillon Professor of International Affairs, Harvard University

“Being able to plan and integrate new approaches, and feeling confident about the returns and when those will be achieved… that’s very difficult at the moment for many farmers.”

Paperwork and data requirements

The Farms in Focus report found 30% of farmers believe working through the suitability of practices is a barrier. Also, 50% want clearer information around return on investment and 24% say greater advice, guidance and peer support is needed.

Hiscox says there is a powerful need for “customised information for farmers about what will work, how to start and confidence in when a positive return will be achieved”.

“New ideas are great things until somebody wants to implement them,” says Matthew Peart, a fourth-generation farmer in Central Queensland’s Carnarvon Range.

What farmers require, says Peart, is “a clear vision or goal to move toward, of how you want your land, business, people, animals and environment to be. This clarity helps guide decision-making.”

Yield benefits and returns on investment

Prior to making major changes to processes or technology, most businesses require hard evidence of measurable benefits and return on investment. Farmers are no different.

Right now, in farming, says Katie McRobert, Executive Director, Australian Farm Institute, “no paper can give you the information you need when you’re making these kinds of decisions”.

“Even trials can sometimes be limited because they’re within controlled environments,” she says. 

“Having that real-world application is absolutely crucial. It’s expensive, it’s slow and it’s not sexy. It’s not a new technology. It’s difficult to find people to invest in these kinds of things.”

Peart says it took seven years to begin a rotational grazing program for his cattle, as the relevant information required to set it up more quickly and to understand financial implications simply wasn’t available at that time. However, this innovative new method for their business has been a great success. But that success could have arrived years earlier if more information was available.

“Farmers need evidence before committing capital,” says Carmel Onions, Executive Manager of Agribusiness Sustainability, CommBank. “They’re ready, willing and able to introduce new processes and technologies but, just like any other business, they first need to know it’s worth the time, cost and risk.”

“Farmers are ready, willing and able to introduce new processes and technologies but, just like any other business, they first need to know it’s worth the time, cost and risk.”
– Carmel Onions, Executive Manager of Agribusiness Sustainability, CommBank

Additional revenue streams and green pricing premium

So, what drives so many farmers to innovate?

“Roughly two-thirds across the board of farmers adopting these new approaches are driven by the desire to increase productivity and reduce costs,” says Hiscox.

“Our farming operational decisions are driven by economics and the wellbeing of our animals and land,” said a livestock and cropping farmer from WA, during the Farms in Focus research.

That report also says 30% of farmers identified trends in consumer demand as their biggest source of optimism for future profitability.

These trends include:

• Higher perceived value for sustainably farmed produce and a willingness for consumers to pay a green premium 
• Premium marketing and branding of produce from specific areas
• Carbon projects as a source of revenue or other value
• Renewable energy – both on-farm production and powering equipment – to lower operating costs
• Support for Brand Australia in foreign markets.

“The profitability benefits of practices that reduce high input costs and build resilience against increasing weather variability is becoming clearer and driving greater interest,” says Onions. “There is a lot of information out there for producers to tap into, but we have to make it easier and continue to support well-informed adoption plans.”

Access to finance

“Perhaps the strategic question for agriculture is no longer how do we survive temporary disruption?” says Michael Guerin, CEO, National Farmers’ Federation. “Rather, it’s how do we build farm businesses that remain resilient and profitable in a permanently less-stable world?”

“Perhaps the strategic question for agriculture is no longer, how do we survive temporary disruption? Rather, it’s how do we build farm businesses that remain resilient and profitable in a permanently less-stable world?”
– Michael Guerin, CEO, National Farmers’ Federation

Farms in Focus revealed 43% of farmers identify a need for financial support to transition to new farming practices. This makes sense, when new approaches include changes such as splitting 10 paddocks into 70, as Peart had to do during his initial implementation of his rotational grazing project, or designing and building significant water infrastructure, or investing in on-farm renewable energy production.

Innovation almost always requires up-front capital before benefits can be realised.

“CommBank is here to work with our agribusiness customers to bring their strategies to bear,” says Onions. “We seek to support our customers’ success as they transition their businesses because we understand the direction agriculture is heading. We applaud the innovation and ongoing adaptation of farmers.”