| Abstract | The Farm Management Systems suite of projects came about in response to an increasing need for grower resources and demonstrated capacity to manage the environmental pressures of profitable cane farming. In total 5 projects were raised through contracts with SRDC through funding from the National Heritage Trust (NHT) and a further 3 independently funded by SRDC. The focus for these projects was to develop online information resources and tools to assist growers to manage economic and environmental outcomes, as well as discussion papers and various specific applications. The primary objective of the FMS003 project was to act as a delivery platform for the work completed in earlier FMS resource development projects. The focus was to raise awareness with cane farmers of the economic and environmental benefits of implementing and adopting industry initiatives from the previously completed FMS sub projects. The FMS003 project initially was aimed at “training” 600 growers in the use of the FMS tools developed under FMS001, FMS002 and FMS004. These tools include an online search engine for industry relevant legislation, Codes of Conduct, Regional Indicators, Best Management Practice Guidelines, Self Assessment Checklists, Questionnaires, other resources and sundry documentation. Following the Independent Review delivered by Hassall and Associates in early 2006 the milestones for this phase of the projects were revised. This changed the focus of FMS003 away from grower training in the use of “tools” already developed and towards developing a culture to facilitate sponsorship by service providers and adoption by growers. This would be achieved by providing demonstrable grower value to encourage uptake, utilisation and broad industry support for the tools. The project objectives were not formally revised in concert with the milestones and thus stand as principally to raise awareness. Ongoing communication through the specially established CEO group, a project steering committee and a separate advisory working group found that the sugar industry needed to address environmental and farm practice issues differently to other agricultural sectors. A single prescriptive approach to identifying and managing farm practice systems would not be appropriate given the significant level of difference between and diversity within separate production regions making up the Australian Sugar Industry. The design for the project that was conceived by collaboration between all three groups and consultation across the industry recognised the need for a homogeneous framework covering the entire sugar industry whilst identifying and encouraging regional diversity in farm management practices and modes of service delivery. In this way the sugar industry can communicate to governments, private industry and the community about farming practice as a single industry, while emphasising, supporting and developing regional diversity and individuality. FMS003 addressed this need by restructuring the existing website, enhancing project specific tools and, in collaboration with the industry, developing a grower self-assessment resource that identifies management practices and directs users to relevant local services within each region. We believe that what has been achieved is a coherent industry wide framework or “skeleton” that facilitates communication, comparative analysis, performance benchmarking, measurement and standards of practice upon which existing regional services can be layered and new services identified for funding and/or commercial sponsorship. The Grower Self Assessment component, currently referred to as “FMS Check”, allows growers to quickly clarify, compare and measure their management practices, receive recommendations, and directs them towards participation in relevant regional and extension services to remedy any identified issues of concern. Agrecon collaborated with the sugar industry extensively through the FMS003 project through CEO, steering committee and advisory group meetings, grower forums and organisational communications to most sugar industry regions. Agrecon also initiated a sub contract with BSES Ltd to restructure, revise and further develop the information resources to better reflect regionally relevant industry issues. These collaborations improved Agrecon’s capacity to apply the unique technology and specialist resources which the company has at its disposal to the project and improve overall project outcomes. The final phase of FMS003 assembled and incorporated a series of case studies into a user-friendly but technically robust web-based resource involving 10 growers drawn from 3 main regions to identify the industry wide values, grower specific benefits, and service sector relevance. |
