Food Agility

What Food Agility does

Food Agility CRC Ltd is an Australian Cooperative Research Centre founded in 2017 (officially launched June 2018) and headquartered at Level 14, 5 Martin Place, Sydney. The organisation acts as a broker, designer and delivery vehicle for data-driven agrifood innovation programs, operating across four research pillars: Smart Farming (anchored by the 2,000-hectare Global Digital Farm at Wagga Wagga, NSW, developed with Charles Sturt University), AI & Robotics (horticulture robotics with Yamaha, The Yield, Bosch and UTS), Carbon & Natural Capital (climate reporting and soil carbon measurement with NAB, Mars Petcare and Kellogg's), and Regenerative Regions (renewable energy and circular economy in regional agriculture). It serves four primary customer segments in parallel: agrifood producers and processors (AACo, Tassal, Costa Group, SunRice), technology companies seeking agrifood distribution (The Yield, AgriWebb, Farmbot, NTT), researchers and universities (UTS, QUT, Curtin, RMIT, Charles Sturt), and federal/state government agencies (NSW DPI, Agriculture Victoria, Federal grants via the CRC Programme).

The technology stack spans IoT sensing, AI/ML (computer vision with YOLOv5, transformer-based self-supervised segmentation, predictive analytics for forage and climate resilience), robotics, blockchain-based traceability, and data analytics platforms, with deliverables ranging from 161 academic publications to operational products including AgTrace Australia (national traceability and ESG reporting) and AgTech Finder (agtech discovery portal). Business model is non-profit and three-stranded: (i) Australian Government Cooperative Research Centres Programme funding, (ii) co-investment from a 117-partner network spanning agrifood, technology, research and government, and (iii) commercial fee-for-service revenue from Food Agility Consultancy (FAC), the wholly-owned consulting subsidiary led by Managing Director Richard Norton. The company has reported a $400m+ research portfolio across 64 initiatives, a $10bn projected economic impact independently audited by ACIL Allen, and recognition including Good Design Awards (2020) and the Pierre C. Robert Precision Agriculture Award (2022).

Name

Food Agility

Legal name

Food Agility CRC Ltd

Website

https://foodagility.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Food Agility is an Australian Cooperative Research Centre that brokers, designs and delivers data-driven innovation programs across the agrifood sector, serving producers, technology companies, universities and government agencies through four research pillars, a 117-partner network and a commercial consultancy arm.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agrifood Innovation Research Services

NAICS

Software Publishers (513210)

SIC

Agricultural Prod-Livestock & Animal Specialties (200)

akta.pro primary industry

CEA Monitoring, Sensors & Automation Software (SCADA, IoT, Climate/Recipe Control) (AFAAAHAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sustainability & ESG Consulting (BPAHACAK), Carbon, Sustainability & Farm Certification Support (Agro-Environmental Advisory) (AFACABAL)

Keywords

• Agrifood innovation programs
• Agricultural data analytics
• Smart farming research
• Agtech consulting services
• Precision agriculture research

Headquarters

HQ city

Ultimo

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Government CRC Funding: Australian Government's Cooperative Research Centres Program supports industry-led collaborations between industry, researchers and the community
2. Partner Contributions: Co-investment from 117 industry, technology and research partners in collaborative research projects
3. Commercial Consultancy Services: FAC (Food Agility Consultancy) provides commercial consulting services including project management, climate reporting, traceability and compliance AI solutions

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Food Agility brokers, designs and delivers collaborative innovation programs that apply data and digital technology—including IoT, AI, robotics, blockchain and analytics—to the Australian agrifood industry. Its commercial arm, Food Agility Consultancy (FAC), executes large-scale agribusiness initiatives in project management, climate reporting, and traceability and compliance AI for enterprise clients across the agrifood supply chain.

Product overview

Food Agility is a Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) that operates as a platform organization brokering, designing, and delivering innovation programs for the Australian agrifood industry. The core offering consists of four interconnected pillars: Smart Farming (featuring the Global Digital Farm), AI & Robotics, Carbon & Natural Capital, and Regenerative Regions, supported by the Food Agility Consultancy (FAC) commercial arm. Additional products include AgTrace Australia for traceability solutions, AgTech Finder for technology discovery, and Research Agility methodology resources. The organization connects agrifood businesses, technology companies, researchers, and government through a network of 117+ partners to create data-driven digital solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• AgTrace Australia: Project enhancing Australian producer access to international consumers and overseas markets by improving accuracy, verifiability, and confidence of ESG and sustainability reporting
• Agtech Finder

Products and services

• Food Agility Consultancy (FAC) Commercial consulting firm within Food Agility CRC that leverages research, agritech methodologies, data and analytics intelligence to execute large-scale agribusiness initiatives. Specialises in cost-effective project management, climate reporting, traceability and compliance AI for enterprise clients across the Australian agrifood sector.
• Smart Farming Pillar Research and innovation programme focused on developing smart farming technologies, anchored by the Global Digital Farm—Australia's first automated and digitally enabled commercial farm spanning 2,000 hectares at Wagga Wagga, NSW.
• AI & Robotics Pillar Research programme building smart robotic solutions to automate and optimise horticultural farming activities, delivering cloud-based AI analytics, data security work (with Robert Bosch Australia) and real-time soil moisture sensor networks deployed with The Yield and Yamaha Motor.
• Carbon & Natural Capital Pillar Research programme addressing gaps in technology, quality data and modelling for the emerging carbon economy and natural capital markets, partnering with National Australia Bank and major farm management system companies, and including the Cool Soil Initiative and Rangelands Carbon project.
• Regenerative Regions Initiative Initiative integrating renewable energy, circular economy principles and regenerative agriculture to address energy management, chemical inputs and sustainable handling of organic byproducts and waste streams, backed by Food Agility's submitted Regenerative Regions CRC bid.
• AgTrace Australia Traceability platform enhancing Australian producer access to international consumers and overseas markets by improving the accuracy, verifiability and confidence of ESG and sustainability reporting and accreditation, using blockchain, IoT and GS1 Digital Link QR code standards.
• AgTech Finder Online platform helping Australian farmers and producers make confident technology decisions by searching, sorting and comparing hundreds of agtech products across the Australian market.
• Research Agility Suite of tools and resources for partners to be more agile in research, including methodology frameworks and best-practice data policy such as the Farm Data Code developed with the National Farmers' Federation.

Quantifiable outcome

• $10bn projected economic impact over life of CRC (independently audited by ACIL Allen)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability7 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

32 partnerships are on record, tiered strategic, core and minor.

• Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT)strategicTechnology or Integration · 13 November 2023Partnership with NTT to develop next generation of green agricultural sensing and communication technologies. Australia as testbed for new green IoT technologies.
• Costa GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 September 2022$1.2m partnership for pig welfare and pork provenance using next-generation IoT tags and machine learning.
• Corson GrainminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 August 2022Australasian maize milling business joined Cool Soil Initiative for on-farm GHG reduction.
• National Farmers' FederationstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 May 2022Collaboration to raise industry standards for sharing and securing agricultural data, including Farm Data Code development.
• John DeerestrategicTechnology or Integration · 4 April 2022Collaboration on data sharing project focused on driving improvements in use and management of agricultural data.
• The Yield Technology SolutionscoreTechnology or Integration · 21 September 2021Strategic partnership to build smart robotic solutions to automate and optimise horticultural farming activities. The Yield's Sensing+ solution has been rolled out across Treasury Wine Estates vineyards. Partnership has achieved commercialization in just 6 months thanks to agile research methods.
• Robert Bosch (Australia) Proprietary LimitedcoreTechnology or Integration · 21 September 2021$1.5m partnership to improve data privacy and security across Australian agriculture. Working on protecting data in digital agriculture initiatives.
• Yamaha MotorcoreTechnology or Integration · 21 September 2021Global collaboration on horticulture robotics and AI. Yamaha led $11m investment in The Yield. Autonomous robots deployed for wine industry following deal with Treasury Wine Estates.
• University of Technology SydneycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 September 2021Research partner in AI and robotics pillar, working on smart farming solutions, data security, and IoT technologies.
• Mars PetcarecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Cool Soil Initiative - paddock to product partnership to work with grain growers through regional farming systems groups to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
• Kellogg'scoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Cool Soil Initiative and natural capital initiatives focused on sustainability and emissions reduction.
• Charles Sturt UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey university partner for Global Digital Farm at Wagga Wagga (2,000ha). Leading research in smart farming, agriculture technology, and digital innovation.
• Charles Sturt UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to develop Global Digital Farm - Australia's first automated and digitally enabled commercial farm, transforming into one of Australia's leading 'landscape laboratories'. CSU has assumed exclusive management of both Global Digital Farm and Renewables in Agriculture Centre of Excellence.
• AACo (Australian Agricultural Company)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor agrifood partner in red meat sector innovation and digital transformation initiatives.
• ColescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRetail partner in dairy innovation including Clinical Mastitis Decision Support Tool project.
• WoolworthscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor retail partner in agrifood innovation programs and supply chain transformation.
• TelstracoreTechnology or IntegrationPartner in digital infrastructure for Smart Farming Data Ecosystem and Farm-wide WiFi projects.
• Treasury Wine EstatescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThree-year deal with The Yield following Food Agility project success. Robotics deployment across vineyards in Australia and New Zealand.
• Dairy AustraliacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in dairy innovation including Clinical Mastitis Decision Support Tool and DataGene collaboration.
• Meat & Livestock AustraliacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in red meat industry innovation, traceability, and sustainability initiatives.
• Agrifutures (Rural Industries Research & Development Corporation)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in rice quality prediction, avocado exports, and emerging agricultural industries research.
• NSW Department of Primary IndustriescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment partner in oyster industry transformation, aquaculture innovation, and agricultural technology development.
• QUT (Queensland University of Technology)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey university partner in digital agriculture research, blockchain technology, and agrifood innovation.
• Curtin UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in smart farming research, digital agriculture, and postgraduate education programs.
• Royal Melbourne Institute of TechnologycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in AI research for sustainable food systems, precision agriculture, and agricultural technology.
• AgriWebbstrategicTechnology or IntegrationFarm management technology partner in digital agriculture ecosystem.
• DataGenestrategicTechnology or IntegrationPartner in dairy data and genetics, contributing to Data-Driven Dairy Decisions project.
• TassalstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeafood partner in salmon farming innovation and sustainability initiatives.
• SunRicestrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in enhancing rice provenance and quality prediction program for national network of growers.
• KPMGstrategicImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProfessional services partner in agricultural innovation and sustainability consulting.
• Race for 2030 CRCstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerCooperative Research Centre partner in collaborative research initiatives.
• NTTstrategicTechnology or IntegrationPartnership to develop next generation of green agricultural sensing and communication technologies with UTS.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• AgriWebb: Australian-born farm management software platform serving livestock producers with data-driven decision tools. Comparable because it operates in the same on-farm data and decision-support category that Food Agility's Smart Farming pillar addresses, and is a named Food Agility technology partner.

Broad incumbents

• Climate Corporation (Bayer): Global digital agriculture platform owned by Bayer, providing field-level data analytics, decision support, and traceability for broadacre growers. Comparable as the global commercial benchmark for the kind of predictive analytics and farm data platform Food Agility develops with partners like Bosch and Yamaha, but operating at vastly larger scale and as a for-profit enterprise.
• Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC): Australian R&D corporation for the grains industry and a Food Agility funder/partner (FAC commences GRDC-funded grains supply chain harmonisation project, February 2026). Comparable as an established industry R&D body funding digital agronomy and supply chain research across the same Australian producer base.
• CSIRO (Data61): Australia's national science agency with major digital agriculture and agrifood research programs. Comparable as a much larger incumbent that performs overlapping applied research in AI, IoT, sensing, and farm data analytics, competing for the same federal research dollars and university partnerships that Food Agility draws on.

Direct peers

• Fight Food Waste CRC: Australian Cooperative Research Centre addressing food waste reduction across the supply chain. Comparable because it operates the identical CRC funding and partner-brokering model as Food Agility, with overlapping retail and processor partners (Woolworths, Coles-adjacent ecosystem).
• Future Food Systems CRC: Australian CRC focused on food and beverage manufacturing innovation through collaborative R&D. Closely comparable to Food Agility because both broker data-driven agrifood research with overlapping enterprise partners and university networks, and operate under the same Commonwealth CRC program framework.
• Meat & Livestock Australia: Australian R&D corporation for the red meat industry and a named Food Agility partner. Directly comparable because it operates the same industry-levy/government-matched R&D funding model that channels innovation into the same red meat producers (including AACo) that Food Agility serves.
• AgriFutures Australia: Australian Rural Research and Development Corporation that funds and delivers research for emerging agricultural industries. Directly comparable because it is both a Food Agility partner (cited in the Cool Soil Initiative, avocado exports, and rice quality work) and an analogous organization funding digital agriculture R&D across the same producer base.
• Blue Economy CRC: Australian Cooperative Research Centre focused on marine and ocean industries, operating the same CRC funding model and industry-led collaboration structure as Food Agility. Directly comparable because both are government-backed CRCs that broker research between industry, universities, and government with similar funding mechanics and timelines.
• The Yield Technology Solutions: Australian agritech company focused on传感, predictive analytics, and AI for horticulture (Sensing+ deployed at Treasury Wine Estates). Closely comparable to Food Agility's AI & Robotics pillar outputs and is itself a Food Agility commercial partner; a clear commercialization analogue for Food Agility-incubated IP.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/FoodAgility

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Food Agility