Using robotics to surmount labour challenges in commercial horticultureFrom mobile platforms to deliver automated crop-tending services to banana de-handing robots, QUT's Dr Chris Lehnert is helping cut labour costs to Australia’s indoor cropping sector.
FFS PhD student finds cost-effective hands-free way to estimate plant height in protected cropping facilitiesNamal Jayasuriya’s research at Western Sydney University using machine vision to estimate crop-height, a proxy for vegetative growth, has been published in Computers and Electronics in Agriculture.
FFS hosts successful Summit: For Food’s Sake – fostering collaboration and innovation in WA’s agrifood sectorThe recent For Food’s Sake Summit hosted by Future Food Systems at Murdoch University, Perth, was a testament to the vibrancy and potential of Western Australia’s agrifood industry. Supported by Murdoch University, the event convened stakeholders from diverse sectors to delve into the critical role of collaboration in driving innovation. Prof. Len Collard, an Indigenous…
evokeAG 2024 takeaways: Sideline eventsThis year's evokeAG conference was a mix of plenary and panel sessions. with sessions covering the spectrum of hot topics in ag-tech, from AI to indigenous IP.
evokeAG 2024 takeaways: Conference sessionsThis year's evokeAG conference was a mix of plenary and panel sessions. with sessions covering the spectrum of hot topics in ag-tech, from AI to indigenous IP.
evokeAG 2024 takeaways: The ExchangeThe exhibition floor was ‘connect central’ at evokeAG Perth, with Future Food System’s shared Hospitality Pavilion providing a natural meeting-point.
Robots to make banana processing more a-peelingHort Innovation, QUT, ARM Hub and Australian Hydraulics Services are collaborating with Future Food Systems in a $2M project to automate the labour-intensive job of de-handing bananas.
Mazadul Islam, PhD student: Making glasshouse fertigation more sustainableFFS PhD student Mazadul Islam is working with experts in two nations to find more sustainable ways to fertigate indoor vegetable crops.
Hort Innovation explores tech-enabled solutions to berry-sector labour woesHort Innovation consulted berry growers Australia-wide to identify viable, cost-effective technology to address one of the sector’s greatest challenges: harvesting labour.
FFS PhDs tour National Vegetable Protected Cropping CentreOn 14 June, FFS staff and PhDs visited Western Sydney University Hawkesbury campus and the $7m National Vegetable Protected Cropping Centre.
A fresh R&D agenda for crops grown under coverA new, stakeholder-set R&D strategy aims to address industry challenges and support smart, sustainable growth in Australia’s protected cropping sector.
Harvesting stakeholder insights on protected cropping R&DHort Innovation and Protected Cropping Australia held a Summit on 17 March to develop a fresh R&D plan for the sector.
Automating Australia’s indoor cropping sectorA new, $6.8M FFS project links vertical farm operators, data solutions providers and seed distributors with crop, sensor and IoT experts to develop tools that monitor and manage crop performance, pests, pathogens and pollination in near-real-time, enabling automated indoor production.
Smart mobile platform set to transform indoor pollination operationsQUT robotics experts have developed a self-guiding robotic platform that enables hands-free pollination in a commercial greenhouse, paving the way to cost-effective automation of labour-intensive tasks.
A showcase of future food: Summit exhibitorsThe Summit mini-expo, a mix of future food innovations, Indigenous ingredients, upcycled products, agricultural robots and healthy pulse-based snacks, was a chance for Future Food Systems CRC and QUT to showcase their capabilities in the sustainable agrifood space.
Future of Food Summit: International speakersExperts in infrastructure planning and transport logistics, advanced nutritional analysis and innovative, Indigenous-led agrifood systems from the Netherlands, UK and Canada gave attendees of the 2022 Future of Food Summit much food for thought.
Agrifood, analysis, automation and aeons-old cures: QUT facilities toursFour fascinating guided tours, free to Summit delegates, showcase QUT’s world-class capabilities in robotics and automation, agrifood innovation, tropical crops, advanced analysis and Indigenous ingredients.
International research collaboration to develop sustainable indoor-cropping solutions CRC supporting partner Qatar University is drawing on the expertise and state-of-the-art greenhouse facilities at Western Sydney University to help it develop sustainable fertigation solutions for indoor growers.
Eranda Namal Jayasuriya, PhD student: Imaging analysis for IoT sensor networksSri-Lanka-born, Western Sydney University-based Eranda Namal Jayasuriya is one of two PhD students attached to the CRC’s 'IoT for indoor cropping' project.
CRC report makes cover of Crops journalWestern Sydney University post-doc researcher Sachin Chavan's CRC report 'Protected cropping: Current technologies and target crops' is the cover feature for the June 2022 issue of peer-reviewed journal Crops.