It is late afternoon on a Monday (September 8) in Sydney, and I am ending another beautifully sunny day, which has also been quite productive. We had the opportunity to engage with the meat and livestock industry, grain growers, and academic researchers, and concluded the day by meeting with Horticulture Innovation Australia.
What is clear from all our interactions is that there is room for collaboration between South Africa and Australia’s agricultural sectors. From all our interactions today, it was clear that most stakeholders are aware of South Africa’s farming advancements and its contribution to the global food, fibre, and beverages trade.
The same is true in South Africa; we look at Australia with a great appreciation of their contribution to global meat and livestock, wine, wheat, horticulture and other products.
Oftentimes, it may be easy to view each other as competitors, particularly since we produce in the same season, and can look at roughly the same export markets for some products.
Still, I would argue that there is much room for collaboration and complementarity. If one considers the wheat industry, for example, South Africa is working on boosting its production, but over the foreseeable future, it will likely remain a net importer. Our imports are generally around 1.8 million tonnes a year. Australia is one of the key high-quality wheat producers that could continue to supply the South African market.
Similarly, with rice, we don’t produce any, and Australia could, over time, join the likes of India and Thailand in experiencing the million tonnes of annual rice imports in South Africa.
Importantly, this does not need to be one-way and should not primarily focus on trade. The most promising area for collaboration between the two countries could be in research-related matters. Listening to the various industries today and academic colleagues speak about their current focus on research and innovation, it is clear that we can lean on some of their work, particularly because of the similarities in our environments. The work Australia is doing on plant health and seed breeding in various commodities is particularly key to our agricultural efforts in South Africa.
In the livestock industry, Australia has advanced in biosecurity and surveillance, another area of potential collaboration. Admittedly, the fact that the country is an island provides it with a buffer from the various diseases in a way that South Africa is unable to be shielded. Still, the rigorous biosecurity practices are something that we can learn from and implement in our work at home.
On the academic level, there are already various collaborations between some Australian universities and South African ones on agricultural matters, particularly on poultry and nutrition research. This knowledge sharing and partnership are key to strengthening our farming sectors and enhancing the relationship between the two countries.
There is also a lot more we could learn about the agricultural research funding approach in Australia. Both the government and industry contribute financial resources to research, and industry has a notable say on what areas should be prioritised for the good of the sector’s progress. This is one area we are yet to improve in South Africa.
Of course, we have a structurally different agricultural sector, partly because of our various histories. In South Africa, consideration must be given to the inclusion and support of small-scale farmers.
So, while some in Australia or South Africa may have viewed the other country as a competition, there is room for more collaboration rather than competing. The continuation of visits by industry stakeholders between the two countries and the exchange programmes of researchers and academics is an avenue for deepening the relationships and agricultural progress.
While we can learn from Australia’s biosecurity and other aspects, they, too, have a lot to learn from our thriving farming sector.
8 September 2025
Sydney, Australia
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