Australia
September 21, 2015
Monsanto Australia’s Managing Director, Daniel Kruithoff, welcomed Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s inclusion of an innovation portfolio in his new cabinet to help Australia achieve its economic potential.
“Embracing the rapid advances in science and technology transforming many sectors of the economy will be essential to the future prosperity and sustainability of Australia’s economy. Recognising the crucial role that innovation plays in achieving this is an important step in the right direction, but one that could be undermined by state policies,” Mr Kruithoff said.
“Despite genetically modified crops earning Australian farmers an extra $885 million since their introduction in 1996, some states still deny their farmers access to a technology that has improved the competitiveness and sustainability of their interstate counterparts.
“We should look no further than Australia’s cotton industry to see the pivotal role of innovation and cross-sector collaboration. The industry’s rapid adoption of advancements in science and technology ensures local farmers are able to meet international demand for Australia’s high quality cotton, particularly from China. Almost all of the cotton grown in Australia has been genetically modified to help farmers protect their crops and significantly reduce their insecticide use.
“The industry’s commitment to innovation has positioned Australia as one of the world’s most sustainable cotton producers.
“Collaboration between the private sector and public sector agencies such as the CSIRO has also been instrumental in delivering world-class research and development to local cotton farmers. Cross-sector collaboration will continue to be essential to bringing new innovation to market to benefit sectors such as agriculture,” Mr Kruithoff said.
“Science and technology has always been a key driver of Australia’s agricultural competiveness and is only becoming more crucial as we size up the prospect of producing the food and fibre to meet the demand of the rapidly growing middle class in our region.
“The McKinsey Global Institute says that the populations of cities globally are growing by 65 million each year and that 440 cities in emerging markets will account for nearly half of global GDP growth by 2025. The opportunity to feed an increasingly urban population is clearly within our reach.
“However, it is the level of our investment in and adoption of innovation which will determine just how lucrative this opportunity will be for our farmers and economy. Innovation and cross-sector collaboration have transformed Australia’s cotton industry and epitomises what can be accomplished in other sectors of the economy,” Mr Kruithoff said.
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