A new $47 million weed management investment led by the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) has been developed to support Australian grain growers to manage one of the most persistent and costly challenges facing farming businesses.
Announced by GRDC Chair and grain grower Sharon Starick at the Grains Research Updates in Perth today (24 February) the Weed Management Initiative (WMI) aims to provide sustainable and effective weed management strategies through four nodes across Australia, ensuring both national collaboration and regional specificity.
The 5.5-year initiative will bring Australia's leading researchers and communications and extension specialists together to work on innovative, cutting-edge weed management research, development and extension (RD&E).
Under the initiative, GRDC will invest $25M to create regional nodes with strategic partnerships and $22M in co-contributions from the University of Western Australia, the University of Adelaide, Charles Sturt University and the University of Queensland.
The WMI will also support more than 20 weed research scientists, working under experienced node leads, as well as 12 new PhD student scholarships to build critical capacity in this field.
Mrs Starick said the WMI was a critical investment that GRDC was making on behalf of Australian grain growers and built on three decades of weed RD&E.
GRDC Board Chair Sharon Starick said the $47M Weed Management Initiative was a critical investment that GRDC was making on behalf of Australian grain growers. Photo: GRDC
"Conservatively, weeds impose an annual cost on growers of approximately $4.1 billion in lost production and control measures. This equates to around $196 per hectare," she said.
"This financial burden is exacerbated by the rapid evolution of herbicide-resistant weeds, limited availability of new chemical control options, and shifting climatic conditions affecting weed distribution and frequency.
Investment in innovative, cutting-edge, integrated weed RD&E is crucial for the sustainability and profitability of Australian grain growers. This is why GRDC has invested $25M on behalf of growers and partnered with some of the best research organisations in the country.
"Not only will this initiative help reduce the economic impact of weeds on our farming systems, it will also foster a collaborative research environment capable of responding swiftly to emerging challenges."
Under this initiative, four regional nodes will be established: one in WA, one in the southern region (South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria) based within the University of Adelaide, two in the northern region (Queensland and New South Wales) – catering for the summer and winter cropping systems.
Mrs Starick said this federated approach would build on GRDC's long-term investment in integrated weed management and ensure there was a well-resourced and interconnected research community, and cohesion in national efforts across RD&E.
Five programs will be delivered through the WMI that span the continuum of herbicide resistance from evolutionary dynamics to on the ground mitigation strategies, communications and extension along with capacity building and succession planning.
The five programs are:
- Program 1. Evolutionary dynamics of weed adaptation and herbicide resistance.
- Program 2. Biochemical, molecular and genetic basis of novel herbicide resistance.
- Program 3. Mitigation and management of weeds using novel and integrated approaches.
- Program 4. Capacity, expertise and collaborative uplift.
- Program 5. Communication, extension and adoption of weed research outputs.
"As a grower I understand that one of the most important elements to research investment is ensuring key information is made available to those working on-farm," Mrs Starick said.
"Importantly the WMI will be underpinned by a strategic communication, extension and adoption program ensuring a strong focus on delivery of outputs and information generated being extended to growers.
"Emphasising regional extension and practical demonstration of developed research will ensure that growers have timely access to cutting-edge information and best practices for addressing their weed management challenges."
Find more information about GRDC's Weed Management Initiative on the GRDC website.
