South Australia’s grain sector has set out its vision to become a $6 billion industry by 2030 with the launch of the South Australian Grain Industry Blueprint today.

Led by Grain Producers SA with $140,000 in funding from the Government of South Australia, the Blueprint details the six pillars to support accelerated growth in the industry, including Market Opportunities; Capturing Value; Biosecurity and Market Access; Innovation; Building Industry Capacity, and; Infrastructure.

The Blueprint was launched by Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development David Basham and outgoing GPSA Chair Wade Dabinett following the GPSA Annual General Meeting at Freeling.

Minister Basham said the Blueprint provides the grain sector with a focused goal to reach $6 billion in value by 2030.

“The Grain Industry Blueprint lays the groundwork to drive growth and unlock even greater value from the industry,” he said.

“It comes after extensive consultation and collaboration from across the entire industry for a long-term vision.

“The Marshall Liberal Government is driving growth in the grain sector with policies such as lifting the moratorium on genetically modified crops and investing $1.1 billion over eight years for regional roads and infrastructure upgrades.

“We envisage the innovative initiatives in the Blueprint will help increase productivity to achieve an annual average growth rate of three per cent as per the Growth State agenda.”

In order to achieve the $6 billion target, the Blueprint has identified that the grain industry needs to consider having access to the best markets – locally and abroad, increased yields and decreased costs.

Mr Dabinett said a common theme from growers in the development of the Blueprint was the strong desire to take greater control over their own futures and to move beyond just being a price taker in the global market.

“As an industry, we can help enable this by proactively planning for success,” he said.

“This means taking a longer-term approach and investing in niche projects that become mainstream over time.

“We need to create new markets with targeted offerings and become a producer of food, not simply bulk commodities.

“We can create demand points for grain in SA and capitalise on potentially the biggest opportunity right at our doorstep – a larger domestic market that delivers a price premium and, once established, is the hardest market to lose.”

Mr Dabinett said GPSA was proud to have led and coordinated the development of the Blueprint.

“The Blueprint provides the ideal destination for the South Australian grain industry to 2030,” he said.

“It is up to government and industry to work together to plot the journey.”