If you think of Australian agriculture as a collective entity, it would rank in revenue terms as Australia’s second largest company.
In 2016-17, the gross value of Australian farm production was more than $63 billion.
By comparison, Wesfarmers, a company with strong roots in agriculture and the owner of Coles supermarkets and other big retail brands like Bunnings, Kmart, Target and Officeworks, generated $68 billion in revenue in the same financial year.
Not far behind was another company closely connected to agriculture, Australia’s other supermarket giant Woolworths, which owns big brands like Dan Murphys, BWS and Big W, with revenue of $56 billion.
Rounding out the top 10 are the major banks (Commonwealth, Westpac, NAB and ANZ) and the big miners Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton ($31.6b).
What is one thing that all of these big players have in common?
Well, there may well be more than one, but one thing we can identifiy is that they all invest heavily in marketing to promote their brands to build trust with their consumers and the wider community.
It’s rare to turn on a television or open an online screen without seeing a marketing message from at least one of these major brands appearing before our eyes.
The mining sector collectively also proactively runs public awareness campaigns to remind all Australians about the importance of the industry to jobs, the economy and to the prosperity of the nation.
Australian agriculture produces more annual revenue than most of biggest brands.
It is an economic powerhouse, generating 1.6 million jobs across the supply chain (figures provided by the National Farmers Federation).
It is also Australia’s fastest growing industry, have surged by 23 percent in value in the past financial year.
Yet, as a collective industry, Australian agriculture is rarely visible to the city-based voting public.
At the same time numerous interest groups and Non-Government Organisations work tirelessly to undermine public trust in agriculture, often through cherry picked claims that paint a misleading picture of the whole sector, adding to an ever-increasing burden of regulation on Australian farmers which further diminishes their viability.
Last month, in the lead up to the inaugural National Agriculture Day – a great step in the right direction for promoting agriculture – research commissioned by the NFF indicated that 83 percent of Australians would describe their connection with farming as ‘distant’ or ‘non-existent’.
There is nothing new about that, but the black and white data reinforces the extent to which most Australians have become even more disconnected from where their food and fibre originates, and how unaware they are of the farm sector’s vital importance to our national economy.
So what are we doing as a collective sector to counter this serious public awareness problem?
There are some really positive stories happening if you go looking for them.
The first National Agriculture Day on November 21, an initiative of the NFF, Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting, the Federal Government and Coles (there’s one of those big brands again) was a long overdue step forward, and clearly helped to generate some important balancing mainstream media coverage of the importance of Australian agriculture.
Some years ago Queensland farming group Agforce launched a series of ‘Every Family Needs a Farmer Campaign’ television advertisements in an attempt to counter the public portrayal of farmers as environmental vandals led by green groups campaigning to end tree-clearing.
Meat and Livestock Australia’s Target 100 program helps to showcase the important work Australian farmers do to protect the environment and animal welfare.
A proactive host of individual farmers and rural advocates actively promote and defend their industry on online channels and social media, or spend time spreading the word in schools – for just one example see our earlier article about this year’s Young Lot Feeder of the Year award winner Thomas Green.
Each of these efforts are individually valuable, inspiring and vital.
But, on their own, not nearly enough.
Australian agriculture is a major brand relying on a handful of individual organisations and farmers to shoulder the crucial task of maintaining and building consumer trust for the entire sector.
Isn’t it time for a collective, industry-wide effort?
Think back to those other big brands, and what they spend to maintain public support. Australia’s largest company Wesfarmers, for example, spends over $200 million on advertising in a single year.
Can Australian agriculture afford to advertise its message to the Australian public?
It is worth noting that 2016-17, the Department of Agriculture disbursed $790.8 million in grower-generated levies, plus matching Commonwealth payments, to 18 levy recipient bodies.
A large portion of this revenue is collected for the purpose of industry research and development and marketing.
Just a small share of this collective funding could play a big role in ensuring the Australian public, and Australia’s political decision-makers, better understand the true value of Australian farming.
Amid an ever-rising tide of anti-agriculture headlines and agenda-driven campaigns continually seeking to undermine a disconnected public’s confidence in the food production sector, the question we really need to ask is this:
Can Australian agriculture afford not to promote itself more actively?
A timely and poignant article and following comments. Through the National Farmers Federation (NFF) as our peak farmers body we should be prosecuting this with those who receive our levies. How do we get that right balance of Research and Development and Marketing and are our levy receivers structured to provide optimum efficiency and effectiveness? We can and should be doing this better I believe.
Debt loading should i believe be elevated to a discussion about Balance Sheet structure. Debt is often cheaper than equity but misused (by provider or receiver) can can cause irrevocable damage to a Balance Sheet. Then there is the whole equity argument. Equity (via a multitude of funds) flows around the world looking for opportunities to invest and create jobs and economic activity. We should welcome it within the broader agenda of managing our Balance Sheets and ensure the laws of our land protect what is important within that.
As a state farming organisation within the federated system Ag Force Queensland Farmers Ltd will be looking to drive these issues through and with the support of our national body, NFF. Through the NFF we have the basic structure in place to push this critical agenda much more strongly, what we don’t need is more structures, we just need to use what we have more effectively is my view.
All that needs to be promoted is one fact ” If you don’t eat you die. Farmers produce your food ,so support the YOUR farmers.”
Thank you for a very strategic thinking opinion piece
There are other important aspects of agriculture you could have expanded on
Such as that most regional towns are dependant on the profitability of the surrounding area which is dominantly agriculture and anything that reduces the profitability of agriculture and farmers also affects the local towns
This flow on or multiplier effect also affects the national economy . The millennium drought of circa 2002 had a significant effect on growth rate and employment , far more than its contribution to GDP ( only 2.5% ) would suggest
Australia is a very urbanised country and the connection (and thus understanding ) between city and country seems to have waned dramatically
Far too many who should know better say we export 60-70% of our food production and there is no need to worry . True for some commodities , but we also import a huge amount which is never taken into account so the net position should be very concerning . Mark McGovern of QUT ( and others ) has commented on this . Our net position is possibly only about 20%
Julian Cribb suggests that agriculture is strategically as important as defence
Our forefathers knew the value of agriculture and food security , we seem to have forgotten .Possibly why farmers can not understand why land clearing is so high on ALP’s election promises yet will impact so severely on their traditional voters
The enormous rural debt should be ringing alarm bells as to the health of agriculture . QRAA debt figures and MLA’s northern beef situation report also indicate a unsustainable debt load
No one seems to want to address it . They face the alcoholic’s dilemma – you can not solve a problem until you admit you have one
Is agriculture is too important strategically to be financed by commercial banks ? Why did the Ag Bank of old fund so much agricultural development? An enquiry into the banking sector might ask these questions ?
To avoid any reader drawing conclusions about possible nepotism in Charles Nason’s opening comment, we’d like to point out that he is only a distant relation of Beef Central’s James Nason. Jon Condon
For this argument to make sense Bunnings would have to be promoting the DIY industry as a whole and Masters would still be in business. This is exactly the reason why Australian farmers’ productivity gains are flat lining. I don’t believe that there is any proof generic promotion has ever or will ever be successful in achieving desired objectives. This is just another example of ag-socialism. Unfortunately the majority of farmers and graziers want the benefit of others hard work, persistence and vision without the effort.