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the australian farmer
effectively managed with the smartphone alone, which is an exciting revolution of this era. The following measures could help speed up the digital transformation in the Austral- ian farming system: technical and financial support from the government and NGOs to the business, particularly to the resource-scarce small- and medium enterprises; training and awareness campaigns; digital infrastructure; more col- laboration; and resource shar- ing among the trading partners in the agricultural value chains. Growth in the industry will offer several economic, so- cial, and environmental bene- fits which include, but are not limited to: GDP growth; more employment; increased access to food at optimum prices; development of the regional/ rural businesses; and reduc- tion in waste and greenhouse gas emissions. Dr Imran Ali, PhD, MBA, BSc. (Hons.), is a lecturer in Oper- ations and Innovation Manage- ment at the School of Business and Law, Central Queensland University, Melbourne Campus, Australia. Staff page; Connect on LinkedIn
ing, and grading. Our study at CQUniversity shows that the farmers who use robotics have better operational efficiencies, productivity and profitability compared to those who are per- forming tasks manually. In the dairy industry, robotic milking has gained huge acceptance in Australia. In our interactions with dairy farmers, it was re- ported that robotic milking sys- tems offer better udder health and improve milk quality. With an ageing population and high labour cost, robotics serves as a great alternative to human labour and could ensure con- tinuity of business operations in case of unforeseen upheav- als like the current pandemic. CONCLUDING REMARKS The global digital agricultural technologies market size is rapidly growing and is ex- pected to reach $3.2 trillion by 2025 compared to $320 billion in 2021. However, the speed of digital transformation in the Australian farming systems is slower compared to numerous developed countries. None- theless, digital transformation could offer a myriad of bene- fits to our farming systems and animal welfare, such as improved efficiency and pro- ductivity, cost-saving, waste reduction, enhanced quality, safety, and more control over internal processes. Several complex operations can be
infected plants in the field of animal health quickly, provid- ing specific remedies before the disease spreads and eco- nomic losses occur. It appears that the use of drones is much more cost-effective and effi- cient than fixed- and rotary wing- aircraft used in farming systems. Drones with hyper- spectral sensors can detect which part of a field is receiv- ing too little water, allowing for irrigation adjustments. They can also identify water pool- ing in the field, reducing dam- age to sensitive crops. Farmers can receive all the informa- tion and related statistics on their smartphones. Drones can reach areas that are hard to access with other heavy ma- chineries (e.g., tractors), such as too wet ground, steep ter- rain, and smaller areas requir- ing localised treatment. Given their repertoire of benefits, it is suggested to enhance the drone’s adoption in the Aus- tralian farming system. ROBOTICS Automated robots are mas- sively reshaping farming oper- ations around the world. They help reduce waste and labour costs, thereby increasing oper- ational efficiency and produc- tivity. The use of robotics is increasingly popular in Aus- tralian farming practices and is currently found in seeding, planting, harvesting, load-
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