Mission and Goals
Food and agribusiness is critical to Australia’s economy, with $67.2B of added annual gross value, $41.2B in exports and employing 552,500 Australians. Primary producers are facing rising costs and declining prices. Increased efficiency and productivity are essential to international competitiveness and profitability. The current generation of nitrogen (N) fertilisers lose 50-80% of N to the environment causing economic loss and negative environmental impacts.
The Hub’s mission is to support sustainable intensification, farm profitability, environmental quality and soil health by developing the next generation of high efficiency fertilisers.
We aim to achieve this by:
- Generating new knowledge about soil and plant interactions to inform farming practices and the development and application of new fertilisers
- Creating new smart fertilisers designed to reduce the significant losses of nitrogen to the environment associated with conventional fertilisation
- Working with industry experts, farmers and agribusinesses to develop practical tools to support farmers in making decisions about using the new smart fertilisers
- Developing evidence based estimates of the social (environmental and health) costs of nitrogen losses and the social benefits of new fertilisers to inform government policy, industry and the community
The benefits of this to the Australian economy and community are substantial:
- Enabling primary producers to be more efficient leading to growth in the sector and jobs
- Increasing farm profitability with positive flow on effects throughout the economy, particularly in rural and regional
communities - Reducing the impact of N on ecosystems, biodiversity and reducing greenhouse gas emissions
- Creating a competitive advantage for Australia’s fertiliser industry through superior products.
