Harvesting knowledge can transform world agriculture

Supporting On-Farm Experimentation networks and activities globally to better connect farmers and researchers could help transform the agricultural industry and solve some of its toughest challenges, a international study led by Curtin University in partnership with Murdoch University and CSIRO has found. On-Farm Experimentation (OFE) refers to farmer-centric and data-driven approaches to agricultural innovation where farmers conduct their own experiments in their fields in collaboration with scientists and other industry professionals. It is a way for farmers to test technologies and practices by varying management, observing and measuring changes, and analysing results - all in real farm conditions, with a focus on what matters to each farm and field. OFE departs from a long tradition of agricultural research where results are meant to be independent from local conditions, and instead puts back farmers and their individual circumstances back at the heart of the research process. Lead Curtin researcher Dr Myrtille Lacoste from Curtin's Centre for Digital Agriculture said that the growing need for OFE can be attributed to both the motivation of farmers to learn by observing research results directly, and scientists' own thirst for data. "OFE places farmers back at the centre of innovation and gives them the opportunity to test and measure the effect of any technology or practices that matters to them, from fertiliser, crop variety or cultivation practice, with researchers and scientists providing guidance and expertise rather than leading the entire experiment," Dr Lacoste said.