SUSTAINABLE

AGRICULTURAL
PRODUCTION
The Role of Agronomy
and Sustainable
Agricultural
Intensification
Professor Tim Reeves FTSE 1

Professor in Residence, Dookie Campus

FVAS
 DIRECTOR GENERAL
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre
CIMMYT, Mexico

‘CIMMYT’S WORK HAS SAVED A BILLION LIVES…’

 ROUNDTABLE ON SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

HRH Prince Charles – St James Palace, London UK

But… 50+ years ago…

• I WAS JUST LIKE MANY OF YOU!

• AT UNIVERSITY

• HAD NO IDEA OF WHAT I REALLY WANTED TO DO…

• WHICH JOB???

• VERY FORTUNATE LIFE!

• WHERE CAN YOU GO?

 WHAT IS AGRONOMY?
Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants in agriculture
for food, fuel, fibre, and land restoration. It is both a humanitarian career and a
scientific one. Agronomy has come to encompass work in the areas of plant genetics,
plant physiology, meteorology, and soil science. It is the application of a combination of
sciences like biology, chemistry, economics, ecology, earth science, and genetics.

Agronomists of today are involved with many issues, including producing food, creating
healthier food, managing the environmental impact of agriculture, distribution of
agriculture, and extracting energy from plants.[1] Agronomists often specialize in areas
such as crop rotation, irrigation and drainage, plant breeding, plant physiology, soil
classification, soil fertility, weed control, and insect and pest control.
Wikipedia 2020
DARK EMU by BRUCE PASCOE
FIRST NATIONS PEOPLE HAD TERRACED AND FARMED THE LAND
‘ The unusual quality and friability of the soil was reported by many
colonists in the first years of settlement. ‘The ground was so protected
by mosses and lichens so thick that it was difficult to ride across the
country’. ‘With the onslaught of the sharp little hooves and teeth of
herbivore sheep, goats, pigs and cattle driven in by the settlers, the
ground covers were destroyed and the dews ceased’. Once the soil
hardened, rains ran off the compacted surfaces, and rivers flooded
higher than the Aboriginal people had seen. All of this degradation
took place in just a few years, after centuries of prior management…
Change in average farm yield (FY) of rainfed wheat in Australia
over the period 1852−2012 showing major drivers of change (curves
hand fitted)

2.5
Semidwarf vars., break
crops, N fertilizer

2.0
Mechanization, legume
pastures, herbicides
Grain Yield (t/ha)

1.5
Fallowing, P fertilizer,
adapted vars.
1.0
Source
Millennium Adapted from
drought Donald
0.5 (1964),
Fischer (2009)
Exploitative and J.F.Angus
farming and
0.0 J.Kirkegaard
pers. comm.
1850 1870 1890 1910 1930 1950 1970 1990 2010
2011

Courtesy of Dr J Kirkegaard CSIRO

26 | Potential yields and yield gaps in wheat: the bases of wheat yield progress | Tony Fischer
PURSUING SUSTAINABILITY – ‘RISE AND DEMISE’ -
SUSTAINABILITY IS A ‘MOVING TARGET’
1. Ley farming…

2. More intensive cropping… most sustainable?

3. Continuous cropping… unsustainable?

4 Sustainable intensification – now and future…

1 LEY FARMING

• ‘Holy Grail’… last for ever…

• 60% livestock:40% crops

AGRONOMIC FOUNDATIONS: ROTATIONS CROP/PASTURE; CEREAL and PASTURE LEGUME VARIETIES; P FERTILIZER
TRACE ELEMENTS molybdenum, zinc, copper; GRAZING MANAGEMENT; WEED CONTROL
FAILURE 1970s to 1980s (after c40 years…)

• Economic demise – livestock returns

• Biophysical demise – soil acidification/compaction;

cereal root diseases
 2 MORE INTENSIVE CROPPING - HRZ
• ‘Ley-farming framework’
• Lupins and rapeseed/Canola
• High rainfall first
• Most sustainable system?

AGRONOMIC FOUNDATIONS:
NEW CROPS Canola/Lupins; ZERO TILL; SOIL MANAGEMENT
MANAGING WATERLOGGING – BED PLANTING
 N2O

CH4

CO2
CO2 CH4 N2O
 3 CONTINUOUS CROPPING

• Cereals, oilseeds, some pulses

• Zero till/stubble retention
• Nitrogen fertilizers
• Herbicides, fungicides, insecticides
• Canola/wheat/barley/Canola …
• High returns $$$
AGRONOMIC FOUNDATIONS: CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE;
CONTROLLED TRAFFIC; PRECISION AGRICULTURE; N FERTILIZERS
HERBICIDES/WEED RESISTANCE; HIGH INPUTS/HIGH OUTPUTS;
LEGUME DEMISE
MODERN ‘INDUSTRIAL’ AGRICULTURE
• CURRENT ‘CONVENTIONAL’ METHODS
• BULK OF OUR FOOD SUPPLIES – NATIONALLY, GLOBALLY
• HIGH USE OF EXTERNAL INPUTS
• ENERGY-RICH INPUTS – FERTILIZERS, PESTICIDES, ENERGY
• INTENSIFICATION
• LOSS OF (BIO)DIVERSITY
• ‘MINING’ SOIL NUTRIENTS
• GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS
Digital agriculture technology
innovation ecosystem
Proximal
Sensing

Robotics
Remote
and
Sensing
Automation
Disrupted
Value
Chains
Digital
Agriculture Data
Decision /
Risk Analytics
Analysis AI & ML

Private
Networks
Process and & IoT
Model‐Data
Statistical
Fusion
Modelling

Source: J. Manners 2016

From a Leading Farm Management Consultant 2019

Many farmers in southern NSW, particularly younger

ones, have switched from traditional mixed farming to
more intensive farming systems involving no livestock at
all. While these decisions may have been rationalised or
justified on the basis of dubious economics, or the notion
that sheep are nasty for soil structure and incompatible
with cropping, the reality is that many of these decisions
have been made for reasons of personal choice or
lifestyle.
Australia’s declining crop yield trends II: The role of nitrogen nutrition – A.W.H. Lake
Declining N fertility – need for legumes….

(Sanderman and Baldock 2010)

Courtesy of Dr John Kirkegaard CSIRO

Take home messages (from consultant)

§ Farmers are faced with highly variable crop yields

from one year to the next, with the overall trend in
yields down, due primarily to decreasing Growing
Season Rainfall and Available Moisture
§ The quantity and cost of key crop inputs used in
continuous cropping, particularly herbicides and
Nitrogen fertiliser, is increasing in spite of decreasing
yields
§ The production and financial risk profile of
continuous cropping farm businesses is
increasing, due to crop yields trending down,
coupled with costs of production steadily
increasing
§ A crop production system involving legumes, can be as
profitable as continuous cropping, but even if slightly
less profitable, has considerably less production and
financial risk due to lower input and operating costs
AGRONOMY in the 1980s to 1990s – from a leading NSW farm management consultant 2019

“They certainly were great days, with major productivity

gains achieved due to better crop and pasture rotations in
conjunction with liming and direct drilling.

However, I do believe that we are in exciting times for

agriculture at present; but we do need to think outside the
square, get back to agronomy basics and not expect
every solution to come from a drum!

I get very frustrated with current extension efforts, as it

mostly seems to be product, as in input based, with scant
regard for a systems-based approach. The result is
that as producers’ costs increase as a result of using ever
increasing levels of inputs, without corresponding
increases in productivity, the risk profile of their
businesses rises to dangerous levels”
ADAPTING TO A RISKIER ENVIRONMENT
• CLIMATIC RISKS – DROUGHT, HEAT, FROST (+10-55 days), EXTREME EVENTS

• MARKET RISKS – TRADE BARRIERS, INWARD LOOKING POLICIES

• SUPPLY CHAIN RISKS – INPUTS, WORKFORCE, TRANSPORT

• PANDEMIC RISKS – EXACERBATING EFFECTS…

• ALL THESE RISKS HAVE INCREASED IN THE PAST 10 or even 5 YEARS

PATHWAYS TO SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL
PRODUCTION

• ‘INDUSTRIAL’ AGRICULTURE – CURRENT CONVENTIONAL METHODS

• ORGANIC FARMING
• BIODYNAMIC FARMING
• REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE

• SUSTAINABLE INTENSIFICATION OF AGRICULTURE

ORGANIC FARMING
• Organic agriculture is a holistic production management system
which promotes and enhances agro-ecosystem health, including
biodiversity, biological cycles, and soil biological activity.

• It emphasises the use of management practices in preference to the

use of off-farm inputs, taking into account that regional conditions
require locally adapted systems.

• This is accomplished by using, where possible, agronomic,

biological, and mechanical methods, as opposed to using synthetic
materials, to fulfil any specific function within the system.”
(FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission, 1999).
BIODYNAMIC FARMING
• Biodynamics is a holistic, ecological, and ethical approach to farming,
gardening, food, and nutrition
• Biodynamics is embedded in the work of philosopher and scientist Dr. Rudolf
Steiner, whose 1924 lectures to farmers opened a new way to integrate
scientific understanding with a recognition of spirit in nature.
• Biodynamics has continued to develop and evolve since the 1920s through the
collaboration of many farmers and researchers. Around the world, biodynamics
is alive in thousands of thriving gardens, farms, vineyards, ranches, and
orchards.
• The principles and practices of biodynamics can be applied anywhere food is
grown, with thoughtful adaptation to scale, landscape, climate and culture.
REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE

• DESTINATION

• DESIRABLE OUTCOME

• REGENERATION OF NATURAL RESOURCE BASE – SOILS, WATER, AIR

ENHANCING CURRENT FARMING
SYSTEMS…SUSTAINABLE INTENSIFICATION

• More input-use efficient

• Less water
• Less energy-rich inputs
• Less greenhouse gas emissions – social license
• More diverse and resilient – climate, markets
• Increased emphasis on nutritional value
• Re-build soil C and N
 What does Sustainable Intensification
of Agriculture mean?

A scientifically sound pathway to more restorative and

regenerative agriculture …
SUSTAINABLE INTENSIFICATION OF AGRICULTURE

The goal of sustainable intensification is to increase food

production from existing farmland while minimising pressure on
the environment. It is a response to the challenges of increasing
demand for food from a growing global population, in a world
where land, water, energy and other inputs are in short supply,
overexploited and used unsustainably.
Any efforts to ‘intensify’ food production must be matched by a
concerted focus on making it ‘sustainable.’ Failing to do so will
undermine our capacity to continue producing food in the future.

Oxford Martin Programme ‘Future of Food’ Oxford University UK

SUSTAINABLE INTENSIFICATION PRACTICES
• Conservation agriculture (CA) - minimal soil disturbance (zero tillage);
surface mulches; diverse rotations and integrated production of crops,
forages, livestock, trees and shrubs WEEK 3

• Healthy soils with greater levels of soil C and N, through integrated

soil nutrition management, including more legumes WEEK 6 AND WEEK 7

• Efficient water management that improves productivity, labor and

energy efficiency; helps reduce agricultural water pollution and ultimately
uses less water WEEK 8

• Improved crops/varieties/livestock that are well adapted; high yield

potential; resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses; input-use efficient;
higher nutritional quality WEEK 9

• Integrated pest management based on farming practices, resistant

varieties, natural enemies and judicious use of pesticides WEEK 11
GRAND CHALLENGES to FOOD and
NUTRITIONAL SECURITY
1. Loss and degradation of our Natural Resources

2. Adaptation to Climate Change

3. Nitrogen (in)efficiency and losses

4. Food loss and waste

5. Neglect and erosion of rural communities

70% GLOBAL FRESHWATER USE - AGRICULTURE
 Pressure to reduce GHG
emissions!
•Agriculture – 14 to 2% now...50+%
by 2060!

•Nitrous oxide (300 x C02)

•Methane (30 x CO2)

GC 2 Adaptation to Climate Change
• Greater variability – seasons, rainfall, temperature
• More extreme events – heat, drought, floods, fires,
frosts
• Changing weather patterns – precipitation
• Warming and drying
• Elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide

WEEK 4
Most studies project net adverse impacts on crop yields
due to climate change
(3° C warmer world)

Source: World Bank. 2010. World Development Report 2010: Development and Climate Change.
Washington, DC: World Bank.
GC 3 Nitrogen Use (In)Efficiency

•Economic costs of low NUE

•Environmental costs
•N fertilizer = 50%+ protein in diets
•Dependency on N fertilizers and demise
50% of

legumes

WEEK 7 50%
Global Nitrogen Fertiliser Use
0.2 20

Nitrogen Fertiliser (Billion tonnes)

18

World Population (Billion)

16
0.15
14
12
0.1 10
8
6
0.05
4
2
0 0
1960 1980 2000 2020 2040
Global Nitrogen Use INEFFICENCY

Tilman et al. 2002

Nitrogen ‘Cascade’

Too Much Nitrogen: In a Cascade

E
N
V Smog, Haze Forest Impacts Acidification
I
R
O
N
M
E
N
T

Ozone Hole Global Warming Eutrophication

Galloway et al 2016
Diversification – we can do better!
Canola-wheat-canola… not sustainable…
• More diverse crop and pasture varieties
• More diverse programs - fallowing
• Diverse crop grazing regimes
• Livestock
• More legumes – pasture and crop
• More trees and shrubs – shade/shelter!
• More spatial and temporal diversity
• Supplementary irrigation
• More ‘weather independent’ options
• Think ‘outside of the box’
Soil health is critical!
 Soils are the ‘engine room’ of
productivity, profitability and
sustainability and water is the fuel…
Professor Timothy G. Reeves FTSE
 Pasture Legumes and Mixed Farming Systems
– Diversity, Resilience and Sustainability

BNF 19: ‘Bag’ N 1 BNF4: ‘Bag’ N 1

GENETIC IMPROVEMENT - crop (and livestock
traits) for sustainable intensification
• INPUT USE-EFFCIENCY – WATER, NUTRIENTS, CARBON DIOXIDE

• DIVERSE SYSTEMS ADAPTATION

• STRESS TOLERANT – BIOTIC AND ABIOTIC

• MORE NUTRITIOUS PRODUCTS

70% GLOBAL FRESHWATER USE - AGRICULTURE
Kirkegaard et al, Crop & Pasture Science, 2014, 65, 583–601
INTEGRATED PEST/WEED MANAGEMENT
• Resistant weeds, pests and diseases – “…matter of time…”
• Substantial room for improvement
• Harrington Seed Destructor, an example
• Rotations/farming systems
• Cover crops
• Microwave heating – seedbanks and weeds
• What if glyphosate goes…???
 Prototype development for microwave weed treatment

Figure 1: Proposed four by 15 kW field prototype

for microwave weed treatment
• PTO driven microwave treatment to kill weed plants already emerged in field
• Target travel speed: 8-10 km/hr
• Preliminary prototype for full-scale field trials - System design completed – INVESTMENT agreed

• New Book: Brodie, G. I., Dorin Gupta, Khan, M. J., Sally Foletta and Natalie Bootes 2018, Microwave Based Weed Control and Soil Treatment, Warsaw/Berlin: De Gruyter Open Ltd: In Press.

74
COURTESY DR GRAHAM BRODIE – DOOKIE CAMPUS University of Melbourne
ROAD MAP to greater sustainability on-farm
with SUSTAINABLE INTENSIFICATION
• More diversity: of crops - including more legumes - crop varieties and crop
management in an all-cropping system
• Start to ‘brown manure’ legumes as a ‘double break’ and a N sparing
mechanism
• Introduce rotations with forages including legumes, dual-purpose crops
and livestock into the system to help build soil N
• Diversify the forage base to include special purpose annuals; and deeper-
rooted perennial grasses, including native species, to help build soil C
• Diversify the grazing systems to include rotational grazing, and when
required drought-feeding areas
• Integrate trees, shrubs for shelter, diversification and C sequestration
CONCLUSIONS – Sustainable Intensification
• BUSINESS AS USUAL NOT A VIABLE OPTION – RISK MANAGEMENT

• SUSTAINABLE INTENSIFICATION more RESTORATIVE/REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE

• MORE RESILIENT, EFFICIENT and DIVERSE SYSTEMS

• RE-BUILD SOIL CARBON and NITROGEN LEVELS

• SUSTAINABILITY a MOVING TARGET!

• FARMERS and SCIENTISTS

ROLE OF AGRONOMISTS HAS CHANGED
• PRODUCTIVITY – ALWAYS BEEN A FOCUS

• PROFITABILITY – LAST 20 YEARS

• COMPLIANCE – LAST 15 YEARS

• SUSTAINABILITY – STILL EVOLVING…