Industry has invested approximately $18.8 million since 2003 into research projects that are helping horticultural growers adapt to climate change – including projects on water use efficiency, surviving the drought, pest and disease management, best management practices and climate variability projects. 

In comparison with the extensive climate change and climate variability R&D conducted in broad-acre agriculture and the grazing industries, this investment by horticulture is smaller and mainly involves more recent investments as a result of the drought; through the HAL Environment Portfolio. See here for more information on the HAL Environment Portfolio.

Due to the diversity of the industry and the anticipated impacts climate change poses for horticultural businesses, the research responses that industry is and will need to continue to implement to manage and adapt to climate change are varied.

While there has been a significant amount of research already undertaken, there are still gaps in climate change research relevant to horticulture, and further investment is required. 

To reduce the impact of climate change, it is imperative that management strategies be identified and implemented by horticulture to either offset negative impacts, or take advantage of positive responses (e.g. increased concentrations of atmospheric CO2 could benefit productivity of most horticultural crops).
 
It is also important to develop the capacity and knowledge so that growers can make effective business decisions, minimize risk, and manage our response to current climate variability more effectively.  This will ensure both the long-term viability and sustainability of our industry, and continued availability to consumers of fresh and health-giving horticultural outputs.

The Horticulture Climate Change Action Plan has been developed to drive the agenda on climate research within horticulture in order to answer the question, “What does climate change mean to my farm?”  See here for more information on the Action Plan.