Western Australia
April 30, 2009
 Council
of Grain Grower Organisations Ltd (COGGO) CEO, Geoff Smith,
has announced his intention to retire once a suitable
replacement can be appointed.
Mr Smith said that after almost eight years in the role, during
which time he’d helped grow COGGO into Australia’s most
successful grain grower voluntary funded plant breeding
organisation, the time was right.
“I have personal and hobby interests I wish to pursue more
actively and at 58 years of age I feel now is the time to do
that,” he said.
“I will leave COGGO in a very sound financial position, with
well established and profitable investments in pulse, wheat and
oilseed agronomy and breeding, which will pave the way for a
fresh start and fresh challenge for my ultimate replacement.”
Bindi Bindi grower and COGGO Chairman, Bruce Piper, said Mr
Smith had made an outstanding contribution to COGGO and he and
fellow Board members respected the decision and immediately
commenced a nationwide professional recruitment campaign.
All COGGO Board members are growers: Bruce Piper, Bindi Bindi,
Aiden Obst, Mingenew, Bruce Eyres, Kulin, Christopher Roberts,
Esperance, Steven Rowe, Mullewa, John Carstairs, Perenjori and
Gerard Paganoni, Broomehill.
“Geoff forever has a special place in COGGO’s history and leaves
a platform from which his replacement can build and consolidate
COGGO’s position at the forefront of Australian plant breeding,
in line with our motto of farmers breeding profit,” Mr Piper
said.
COGGO is a public company formed more than 10 years ago at the
initiative of a group of WA grain growers concerned at what they
perceived as inadequate resources being allocated to plant
breeding and biotechnology in the state.
“WA growers wanted a greater say in breeding crop varieties and
agreed to voluntarily contribute 0.5 per cent of net farm-gate
value of production for investment in plant breeding and
associated R&D through COGGO,” Mr Piper said..
This contribution now plays a major role in helping Western
Australia (WA) maintain market competitiveness and viability in
the grains business.
With about 2000 WA members, COGGO covers approximately half the
state’s growers.
COGGO supports a number of grower groups in WA, partners the
Grains Research and Development Corporation in Canola Breeders
WA and partners Australian Grain Technologies in a WA wheat
breeding venture, AGT-Western Australia.
Mr Smith listed some of the highlights of his eight years as
COGGO CEO:
• Incorporation of Canola
Breeders WA and joint venture wiuth NPZ Lemke.
• Joint venture with wheat breeder Australian Grain
Technologies.
• Formation of COGGO Seeds.
• Introduction of COGGO’s Divident Entitlement Unit Scheme.
• Establishment of chickpea breeding consortium with DAFWA,
UWA, CLIMA, ICRISAT.
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