18 May 2026
The Sowing the Seeds of Farming Innovation Fund (SSFIF) is a $30 million Queensland Government initiative designed to accelerate agricultural innovation, adoption and productivity across Queensland’s primary industries.
- The Fund will invest in innovative businesses that improve productivity, profitability and sustainability across Queensland’s primary industries.
- Primary Industries Prosper 2050 identified innovation, readiness and adoption as a priority in achieving the Government’s goal of growing Queensland’s primary production to $30 billion by 2030.
- Consultation on the blueprint made clear that stronger commercialisation pathways and more targeted investment were needed to help good ideas move into practical use.
- That is why the government has adopted a Queensland Investment Corporation-managed investment model, rather than a more traditional grant or research-style approach.
- The Queensland Investment Corporation will manage the Fund and use its commercial investment expertise to identify and support businesses developing solutions for the sector.
- The Fund will invest in innovative businesses from early-stage through to growth and selected later-stage opportunities.
- The Fund will draw on Queensland’s strong industry and research expertise, so it remains closely connected to the needs of primary industries and builds on the State’s existing innovation capability.
- The Fund will support innovative businesses with strong potential to deliver productivity benefits for Queensland’s primary industries and a clear benefit to Queensland.
Eligible investments under the Fund could include:
- Agri-automation and robotics to improve on-farm operations, processing efficiency, and labour productivity;
- Digital solutions such as farm management software, decision-support tools, traceability systems, data analytics, and remote monitoring technologies;
- Agri-smart solutions such as water-use efficiency systems, soil and biodiversity measurement tools, and technologies that support land stewardship;
- Biomanufacturing and agricultural biotechnology that benefit producers, processors and supply chains; or
- Infrastructure innovation such as logistics, supply-chain optimisation, advanced processing technologies and interoperability standards.
Targeted investment is needed to scale practical solutions and ensure Queensland producers have access to the best technologies available.
The Fund will help accelerate innovation across primary industries and strengthen Queensland’s long-term competitiveness.
