ACC CEO Anthony Lee. Picture: Nigel Hallett
THE appointment by Australian Country Choice of a full-time Agriculture Education and Engagement Officer is an industry-first initiative that Chief Executive Officer Anthony Lee is urging other corporate beef and agriculture businesses to adopt within their own organisational structures.
Four years after delivering a watershed speech at the Brisbane Ekka on the importance of returning agricultural education to classrooms across the country, Mr Lee showed his commitment to the cause has not diminished in a recent address to an RNA lunch in Brisbane.
He continues to actively lobby for efforts to prioritise agricultural education in the national school curriculum and improve the level of knowledge about and engagement with farmers and food production systems among Australia’s four million plus school-aged children.
The primary role of ACC’s new full-time position is to directly engage with and educate school, university, TAFE and other student cohorts about what the company does and why it does it, while also introducing them to the wide variety of career opportunities available in the business, and the wider beef and red meat processing industry.
This is done through age-appropriate and curriculum-aligned immersive and interactive experiences, site tours, career presentations and hands-on learning experiences across the ACC red meat production and processing supply chain operations.
He said the position also plays an important educational and engagement role for ACC customers, teachers and careers advisors, academics, research and development bodies, beef industry partners and peak bodies, rural and regional communities and the general public.
The investment in the new position was “a very deliberate business decision and commitment of resources” that would allow the business to make a real contribution to enhancing the level of knowledge and understanding within schools, industry and the wider community about where our food comes from and how it is produced, processed and distributed.
Industry urged to ‘own’ agricultural education
He said all participants in the industry needed to step up and play a much bigger role in educating the public, current consumers and the next generation.
By playing a much more active role and not just asking government and the formal school education system to do all the heavy lifting, the industry stood a much better chance of securing, maintaining and protecting the critical social license needed for its long-term viability, he said.
“Industry now needs to own and support the development and delivery of food and fibre education, instead of relying on the education system and government,” Mr Lee said.
“The industry has the knowledge, tools and capability to do so in a practical and very beneficial way.”
Closing the classroom knowledge gap
He said one of the most important findings from an agriculture education strategy consultation process undertaken by AgriFutures was teachers not having the time and knowledge and schools not having the resources to prioritise teaching about food and fibre.
“That’s why we decided to pilot this new role, to see if we could close the gap in a small but successful way,” he said.
“Schools are crying out for it and in the short amount of time the role has been on board we’ve seen material gains in teacher, parent and child engagement, and we’re only just beginning.
“Imagine the impact with hundreds of these roles imbedded in agricultural businesses right across the supply chain, Australia wide.”
In his role as the CEO of Australian Country Choice, Australia’s largest family owned and operated paddock-to-plate beef, cattle and food processing business, Mr Lee has been a high-profile advocate of the need to rethink the current design and delivery of agricultural and food production education across our entire schooling system, from early primary to high school and beyond.
He spoke last month as an industry guest panelist alongside the Royal National Agricultural and Industrial Association of Queensland (RNA) Chairman David Thomas and the Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise (TSBE) Chairman Ian Macfarlane at a recent RNA hosted Country Meets City 150 Years Strong Celebration Lunch in Brisbane last month.
Education the key to agriculture’s future
A self-confessed “lifelong Ekka tragic”, Mr Lee used the platform to again espouse the agriculture industry issue closest to his heart.
“Education is both the lock holding us back, and the key to taking us forward,” he said.
“If we can collectively get it right, a new fit-for-purpose agricultural education curriculum and ecosystem will not only open the door to a future for Australia’s current $100 billion agriculture industry where it can continue to go from strength-to-strength through each new generation, but it will also help secure and protect the sectors long-term future and social license.
“This will also mean that when the time is right my generation of food producers can pass on our legacy with confidence to our well educated, well-informed, future-prepared and whole-of-agriculture supply chain literate sons and daughters.
“More importantly however, any of their school classmates, regardless of their own backgrounds, can also have the same opportunities to seek out a job, a career and a life in agriculture or agribusiness for themselves and their families.
“This will be because they too will have been exposed, through our education curriculum and positive on-farm experiences, to a base level of knowledge about our agricultural and food production systems, supply chains, career opportunities, higher education study options and entry pathways”.
His comments resonated deeply with the 100 strong audience of agribusiness leaders and Ekka country and city supporters and corporate partners in attendance.
Anthony Lee
Four years ago, in front of a sold-out audience of 800 people at the annual Malcolm McCosker Memorial Address at the August 2022 Rural Press Club of Queensland Ekka Breakfast, Mr Lee took to the stage and delivered an impactful speech outlining his long-term strategic blueprint for rethinking Australia’s current agricultural education system.
His message continues to focus on several key themes including the urgent need for all school aged children to learn more about our agricultural and food production, processing and distribution supply chains.
In his view it is critical for future generations to learn the facts about where their food comes from, how it is produced, marketed and distributed, why every family needs a farmer and why no one should take for granted our current status as a food abundant country sitting at the bottom of a hungry world.
“These are the farmers and livestock producers who for generations have been feeding and clothing us all consistently through floods, fires droughts, wars and pandemics while quietly caring for the land, vegetation, soil, water and livestock, and supporting their local country towns, businesses and local agricultural shows.
“The ones who have invested heavily over generations in building the physical infrastructure and improvements necessary to grow our food and fibre and who are now investing in the new digital and technology-based infrastructure necessary to thrive in the age of agtech and AI.
“Those who also work year-round under often very trying environmental, social, economic and weather conditions to ensure that they not only look after their land, their livestock and their crops but also their own physical safety and mental health and wellbeing, and that of their families, their workforce and visitors.
“And the very same farmers and livestock producers who are also working around the clock to keep their farms, crops and livestock free from the biosecurity threats, pests and diseases that can trigger a very serious set of consequences across our current food supply chains, export markets and domestic food security if not managed carefully and consistently.”
Connecting city children with agriculture
Asked about his thoughts on the future of the Ekka he believes that a new fit-for-purpose and future-proofed agricultural education strategy can only strengthen the sustainable food and fibre production systems needed to secure the ongoing economic viability and social and cultural attraction of the iconic Brisbane Ekka.
He said such an outcome would go a long way towards securing the future viability of all agriculture shows across Australia, which like the Ekka, are critical to connecting farmers to their city-based consumers.
“They are also critical for giving city-based kids a small taste of life on the land, showcasing the best of our regional produce and giving us all an opportunity to celebrate and say thanks to our farmers.”
From industry call to national strategy
Four years after his original call-to-action speech, Mr Lee remains optimistic and energised as he gave a snapshot of the progress made to date.
In mid-2023 a National Agricultural Education Forum in Brisbane brought together (50) key peak body and key industry association leaders to discuss the development of a new industry-wide national agricultural education strategy.
In late 2023 a national working group made of key industry stakeholders was appointed to undertake extensive consultation and draft a new national strategy.
In November 2025 the National Schools Food and Fibre Education Strategy was launched by AgriFutures Australia, a collaboration between (15) rural research and development corporations designed to transform how Australian students learn about our $100 billion food and fibre sector.
At the launch of the strategy, Chair of the Council of Rural Research and Development Corporations and respected agribusiness and beef industry identity Troy Setter was quoted as saying:
“This is a significant step forward and a game changer for our food and fibre sector. By embedding food and fibre education in schools we are not just teaching kids about where the food comes from, we are also opening doors to dynamic careers in agtech, sustainability and global trade.”
Focused around the three key priorities of strengthening school to industry connections, providing targeted support for educators and securing government backing for curriculum development and infrastructure the strategy was developed through an extensive consultation process.
Feedback and insights gathered from over 900 engagements with teachers, principals, government representatives, industry leaders and education experts across all states and territories over a twelve-month period have directly shaped the priorities and actions outlined in the document.
With the process for implementation having now commenced and led by AgriFutures Australia and managed by consultancy RMCG in partnership with PIEFA, further announcements and initiatives related to the strategy are pending.
Turning strategy into classroom action
Mr Lee believes that the ultimate payoff from the investment of time and resources by all those involved will be seeing the evidence of words on a page turning into real changes to classroom-based agricultural curriculum and content.
A Paddock to Plate Year 3-4 Science project at Timboon School in Victoria.
He is also looking forward to the roll out of a suite of innovative new schools to agricultural industry engagement initiatives, food and fibre production messaging and communication strategies and the creation of new opportunities for city kids to visit a farm, meet a farmer and perhaps decide to one day pursue a career in agriculture.
“If delivered well and supported well in terms of funding and resource commitments by government and all sectors of our industry, this national strategy should quickly improve our school aged children’s general knowledge about farming and where our food comes from and show them the endless possibilities available should they chose a career in farming, agriculture or related agribusiness.
“If we want our great grandchildren to be here in another 150 years celebrating ‘The Ekka 300 Years Strong’ story then we must all commit the necessary resources in 2026 and each year after to make this work”.
In 1889 one A.B. Banjo Patterson wrote about a vision splendid in his famous poem Clancy of the Overflow and it has been an ideal many generations of Australians since have sought to find for themselves.
If Anthony Lee’s personal advocacy and his recent decision to commit funding for the employment of a dedicated Agriculture Education and Engagement Officer within his own business becomes the catalyst for others across the wider agriculture sector to step up to the mark and follow suit, his “vision splendid” is a better than even chance of being awarded an A-plus by future generations.
Great story. As someone who worked with Anthony 20 years ago I can attest to his commitment to his team.