If farming in New Zealand is to remain strong, a way needs to be found to attract younger, more tech-savvy people to the industry.
"The average age of farmers is in the late 50s and getting older," says Frazer Weir, head of the agribusiness sector of BDO, the business advisory and accountancy firm. "Technology and data analysis is changing farming and in the future those wanting to own or run a farm will need a good education and be tech-savvy."
Weir says there has traditionally been a perception farming is a simple business and easy to run.
"But that is not the case, it is in fact even more complex than many commercial enterprises because it is not only dealing with all the normal challenges facing business, but also involves coping with changing environmental and climate issues - and all the other variables around stock and crops."
Weir says the impact and use of technology and data analysis will be important to farming in the future and give it the tools to further improve efficiency: "Along with having good stock management skills, farmers also need to be tech-savvy."
He says technology and data analysis, for example, now enables farmers to test their soil giving them information on fertiliser needs for every individual hectare; it also allows them to monitor individual animal performance so they can make decisions about which animals to breed from.
Weir agrees with the view that because technology is being utilized in farming all over the world, the New Zealand industry risks falling behind if it does not upskill its farm owners and workers.
"I believe the future is very, very strong for farming and the growth still occurring in Asia provides a great opportunity for New Zealand," he says. "Many agriculture industry organisations are doing a lot of work in training people to run a modern business so we can be in a position to take advantage of those opportunities."
Weir says technology will play a vital role in the successful future of New Zealand agriculture and it is important the industry collaborates with IT professionals.
Weir is not alone in this as many other industry experts are stressing the importance to farming of the new frontiers of automation and digitisation: The New Zealand Technology Industry Association (NZ Tech) says global agritech investment is growing rapidly - in 2014 it was estimated at over $US2.36b - and New Zealand needs to follow progress such as this if it is to make the most of what IT has to offer.
A recent Ministry for Primary Industries survey contended improving the performance of even the top 25 per cent of farmers could increase the value of exports by up to $3b a year.
Weir says it is not just technology challenging the future of farming; climate change and environmental issues are also impacting how farming is conducted - factors not encountered to the same degree by farmers even as recently as 30 years ago.
"We are seeing a lot of variability in climate and environmental demands so the challenge is to build a farm system that is resilient to this - a system that can function equally efficiently through dry and wet periods alike," says Weir.
Weir says the majority of farms are still family-owned businesses - and in the modern era this is also throwing up a challenge to the industry's future.
"The influence of family can create difficulties," he says. "Dad, mum and a son living and working together on a farm introduces a whole different dynamic and the challenge here is to devise a system in which everyone is held to account and to show them how to work together to grow the business."
Weir says it is important to develop ways to allow young people entry to farming.
"There are any number of graduates coming through the education system," he says. "But farming is very capital intensive, so it is about building a system allowing young people access to that capital."
For more information on BDO's Agribusiness services go to www.bdo.nz/agribusiness
