A pioneering digital platform that connects investors with agrifood entrepreneurs, researchers and industry leaders has led to AgriFutures Australia being recognised as one of the country’s most innovative companies.

At its annual awards ceremony last night, the AFR BOSS Most Innovative Companies List ranked AgriFutures 5th in the top ten Government, Education and Not-for-Profit category.

The AgriFutures grow^AG. platform was chosen for its innovative approach to closing the gap between the investment community and Australia’s agrifood startups, researchers and farmers and producers. The platform, which was launched in April 2021, has more than 80,000 users, a third of which are based overseas, and has listed more than 160 commercial opportunities and 2,700 research projects.

AgriFutures Managing Director, John Harvey said to feature so highly in the prestigious awards was a testament to the collaborative efforts of everyone involved in developing the platform for Australia’s agrifood innovation networks. 

“It’s an incredible honour for AgriFutures Australia to be named in the AFR’s top 10 most innovative organisation list for its grow^AG. platform, and timely recognition for Australia’s agrifood innovation industry to be celebrated as world-class, as it continues to punch well above its weight,” John said.

John explained the ambition is to make Australia the epicentre of the agrifood tech sector in the Southern Hemisphere by bringing together what traditionally have been quite siloed industries.

“By creating an easy-to-use platform to showcase expertise, research and commercial opportunities from around Australia, grow^AG. is changing the way in which investors, corporates, startups, researchers, government, and universities engage with each other,” he said.

“grow^AG. helps innovators navigate the challenges of transforming a research project or technology into a commercially viable product or service, and provides value to the end user, from farmers right through to consumers.”

Complementary to grow^AG., AgriFutures has created evoke^AG., the Asia-Pacific’s premier agrifood tech event where farmers share their experiences, startups pitch their potential, scientists showcase their discoveries, global business leaders share their insights and industry experts debate the hottest topics. Tickets are on sale now for evoke^AG. 2023 – Down to Earth, via evokeag.com, which will be held in Adelaide from February 21-22, 2023.

About AgriFutures Australia

AgriFutures Australia is a research and development corporation funded by government and industry to grow the long-term prosperity of Australian rural industries and communities. It conducts research, development and extension programs for a number of established and emerging industries and has created the grow^AG. and evoke^AG. platforms.

About the Awards

Now in its eleventh year, the AFR BOSS Most Innovative Companies list (previously the BRW Most Innovative Companies list) ranks the most innovative organisations in Australia and New Zealand by industry. 

More than 700 organisations were nominated for the awards across Australia and New Zealand, with a rigorous assessment process undertaken by leading behavioural science consultancy Inventium, in conjunction with a panel of industry experts, to arrive at the top 10 companies in each category.

Specifically, the judges look at how valuable the problem is that the innovation is solving, the quality and uniqueness of the solution, and the level of impact that the innovation has had. The full list and summaries of each innovation can be viewed HERE.