Elevate Dairy Roadshow mini update

Last week Beanstalk AgTech and Gardiner Foundation finished a ten day tour of Victoria’s dairy regions as part of the inaugural Elevate Dairy Innovator Roadshow.

The Roadshow brought seven leading innovators to Victoria for industry briefings, farm visits, a processor visit and three public Innovator Showcases in Morwell, Shepparton and Warrnambool. The seven agtech innovations that were showcased were selected because of their relevance to Victorian dairy operations, spanning herd management, farm operations, energy, fertiliser and on-farm safety.

Across the three showcase locations the innovators met with over 170 farmers and industry representatives, offering them the chance to engage with the technologies in a relaxed setting and share their thoughts directly to the business. Following the Beanstalk Landing Pad methodology, the Innovator Roadshow is designed to meet farmers and industry where they are at, while introducing them to new, but proven, technologies in a non-commercial and approachable way.

Picking up on the animated conversations between farmers and innovators filling the venues, we heard farmer appreciation for the variety of technologies in the showcase and the opportunity gain exposure to new solutions they otherwise wouldn’t have considered.

It doesn’t stop here though, because successful adoption needs more than a Roadshow - it needs dedicated support to set up in a new market. The next step for the Elevate Dairy program is to choose the best pathway to support to the innovators to set up in Victoria with a mixture of cash and in-kind support.

Stay tuned! As the delivery partner for the Elevate Dairy program, the Beanstalk team is looking forward to sharing more about the behind the scenes experience of planning and executing the roadshow in an upcoming longer blog post. Until then, enjoy some snaps from the road and direct farmer feedback from the showcase events.