The stunning turnaround in Australia's agricultural fortunes over the past 12 months ranks as a rare highlight from an otherwise challenging year.
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With grain hoppers overflowing, livestock prices high and demand for Australian produce growing, there is every reason to be increasingly confident about the future.
While a 7 per cent increase in the value of agricultural production across Australia is a reason to celebrate, it demonstrates the size of the challenge facing the industry if it is to achieve its $100 billion by 2030 target.
The sector must grow by as much in the coming nine years as it did in the past generation if this ambition is to be realised.
Australian agriculture cannot afford to reverse the gains made in the past year - it has to turbocharge growth, adapt and change if this reasonable ambition is to be realised.
Building resilience for the next dry spell, trade downturn or other industry challenge is essential.
There has arguably never been a better time to ramp-up digital farming.
While digital agriculture cannot put more water in the dam or make it rain, it can help farmers better utilise finite resources, monitor livestock and reduce farm input costs for things like fertiliser and chemicals.
How many times a week do you drive to a paddock just to check on things?
Surely it be easier if you could monitor water in troughs, or your farm gates and storage sheds remotely?
Last September, NBN released the findings of our Connecting Australia Future of Farming research, which found internet-enabled digital agriculture could increase the industry's value by up to $15.6 billion by 2030.
AgriFutures Australia predicts "business as usual" in agriculture will see the industry fall $15.7 billion short of the 2030 target - the adoption of digital agriculture is the difference between success and failure.
Farmers need to be considering how ready their business is to adapt to an increasingly digital environment.
While mobile communications technology has played a significant role in the growth of digital agriculture to date, the capacity for the fast and far-reaching NBN to help increase the spread of digital agriculture across Australia is significant.
Over the next 12 months, NBN will continue working with governments, the National Farmers' Federation, peak industry and state farming groups, rural research and development corporations and others to increase understanding of the benefits of digital agriculture and learn ways to support the 2030 target.
We are Australian agriculture's partner in digital agriculture.
Together, we want to help farmers save time and grow productivity with the NBN.
Robert Hardie is the head of segment-agriculture at NBN.