South Australia’s Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development Tim Whetstone travelled to Israel as part of an Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce Trade Mission.
According to a recent press release, the top agenda for this trip is the opportunities to grow South Australia’s AgTech sector.
AgTech, which looks at how digital technology can improve food production, has been identified by the South Australian Government as a key growth area.
It will help South Australian farmers boost agriculture to an AU$ 100 billion industry in Australia by 2030.
Why Israel?
Israel is a world-leader when it comes to innovation and the adoption of AgTech, enabling farmers and agronomists to optimise crop management and feed the world.
The Minister’s trip to Israel will provide him with learnings that will help shape the future of AgTech policy, particularly since the State Government aims to grow the agriculture and horticulture sectors in South Australia.
The Minister explained that Israel has more than 750 active start-ups and companies operating in the food tech and AgTech sectors.
As such, there are enormous opportunities to better understand how South Australia can benefit from greater adoption and commercialisation of technologies.
Given that Israel is known for having a dry climate, it has identified technology as a key to driving inventive agricultural solutions, including the desalination of commercial water.
There are enormous opportunities to grow the AgTech sector in South Australia and given Australia’s similar climate to Israel, there are a lot to be learned from its world leading technologies.
Learning new technologies
The Minister will be meeting more than 30 experts in their field while in Israel.
These fields range from an organisation that uses insects as a protein source for animal feed, to a company that specialises in green pest control, such as fruit fly.
In order to grow and improve the way business is being done, it is critical to embrace technology and apply the latest knowledge and practices.
AgTech is a focus for the government and that is the reason behind why they are in the process of forming the Ministerial AgTech Advisory Group.
This group will be responsible for looking at overcoming barriers that may be preventing producers from adopting new or emerging technologies, commercialisation and focusing on a long-term strategy to grow AgTech in South Australia.
Preparing young Aboriginals for the future
In other news, the South Australian Government is equipping the Aboriginal learners for the skills of the future.
The Annual STEM Aboriginal Congress is a two-day event that gathers together the next generation of young Aboriginal scientists, engineers and mathematicians.
The congress engages Aboriginal students in Years 5 to 10 through a range of interactive, challenging and culturally relevant experiences designed to encourage more Aboriginal students to choose STEM subjects in Years 11 and 12.
South Australian Premier Steven Marshall explained that the congress is one of the ways they are providing learning opportunities and future career pathways for Aboriginal students in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
He stressed the importance for them to see themselves as prominent contributors to the workforce and the next generation of STEM experts in Australia and across the world.