What drives farmer decisions?

Following on from Dr Luke’s first Soil CRC project – Surveying farm practices, this project will complete the surveying of land management practices.

Farmers and their on-farm management strategies are critical to the ongoing health of Australia’s economy and environment.  It is important to understand what drives farm management decisions, so that research can be better targeted.

The surveys will take place across regions and industries for an improved understanding of current practices, and to better understand farmer aspirations and motivations, as well as perceptions of existing and proposed research and development initiatives.

Four surveys have been administered in the initial project in Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and New South Wales. For this project, another two surveys will be completed, in Queensland and Tasmania,  and the data will be spatially analysed. All survey instruments are co-developed with local Soil CRC partners and Soil CRC scientists.

The Soil CRC will better understand grower’s needs and intentions, and as a result other projects can be better targeted to meet those needs. The surveys will address regional and industry nuances of different farming groups, enabling follow-up surveys in five to six years, which will provide a means to evaluate the impact of the CRC.

Improved understanding of farmers and their practices will help the Soil CRC and the farmer groups to better target their innovations, communications and contribute to their strategic planning.