Future Ready Crops
About
AFII Strategic Focus areas engage Theme AFII engages Theme Leads who work with the AFII team to build collaborative networks across the university. They also create events and activities that build capability and explore new approaches.
Theme Leads, Florence Danila and Kai Chan from the Research School of Biology discuss how ANU brings multidisciplinary expertise to future ready crop challenges.
Australian agriculture is under growing pressure from climate change, rising costs, and shifting global markets. Farmers are facing more frequent droughts, heatwaves, and frosts, as well as evolving pests and diseases that threaten yields and livelihoods.
Traditional crop varieties, bred for stable climates and gradual temperature shifts, will soon be unproductive in Australia. Developing resilient crops is a complex and time-consuming process, requiring strong collaboration among scientists, policymakers, and industry stakeholders. Without swift action to find adaptable solutions, growers risk falling behind, and Australia’s food security and position as a global food producer will be at risk.
What is the challenge for future crops?
Over the next decade, the challenges for our food production system will intensify. Agriculture will need to:
- Adapt to more frequent and severe climate extremes.
- Protect crops against rapidly evolving pests and diseases.
- Respond to rising input costs while maintaining productivity.
- Meet ambitious sustainability and carbon reduction targets.
- Deliver new, more resilient crop varieties faster than the current 10–15 year development cycles
- Navigate regulatory frameworks for biotechnology and synthetic biology.
- Train the next generation of researchers, innovators and farmers to lead the transition.
These pressures demand new research approaches and faster adoption of resilient crop varieties, supported by policies that accelerate the development of productive and profitable solutions.
How are we helping to solve these challenges?
AFII brings together ANU’s world-class facilities and expertise, encompassing plant phenomics, advanced microscopy, AI, engineering, computing, synthetic biology, and science communication to support future ready crops. We facilitate projects that are:
- Developing climate-ready crops that can handle drought, heat, frost, and emerging biosecurity threats.
- Using advanced modelling and digital tools to predict risks and support smarter farming.
- Exploring new crop products and management strategies that build resilience and profitability.
- Reducing reliance on synthetic fertilisers by deepening understanding of plant–microbe interactions.
- Informing policy and regulation to accelerate new food sources and sustainable practices.
- Partnering with First Nations elders to combine Indigenous knowledge and Western science for sustainable land management.
- Building capacity for the future, training the next generation of crop researchers and innovators through coursework, internships, and industry projects.
Partner with us to future-proof your operations. Whether you're seeking strategic insights, technical solutions, or collaborative innovation, we’re here to help you lead in a climate-smart agricultural future.
News and Solutions
The HyperNUE project uses hyperspectral imaging and remote sensing to monitor nitrogen use and photosynthesis across crops. Led by ANU and global partners, it helps farmers improve productivity, reduce fertiliser waste, and enhance climate resilience.
Discovery of a plant mechanism that reduces water loss without compromising CO₂ intake enables development of drought-resistant varieties, crucial for agriculture in water-scarce regions.
As climate change intensifies, Pacific Island nations are facing longer, harsher droughts that threaten traditional farming systems. A team from The Australian National University (ANU) is working on a solution that could transform agriculture across the region.
Plant breeders can now make predictions about the crops they are growing using computer modelling based on images from space. It sounds futuristic, but this is a reality for some canola breeders in Australia and Mexico following work done by researchers at The Australian National University.
Improving farm dam infrastructure enhances water quality and biodiversity, benefiting livestock health and crop irrigation, supporting sustainable agricultural practices.
What if the rapid innovations that delivered COVID-19 vaccines to the world could be applied to create future-ready crops?