Case IH + FFN | evokeAG Wrap Up
In February 2019 Case IH, together with FFN, ran a competition to send one lucky FFN Member to evokeAG – AgriFutures‘ leading agri-food tech event in Melbourne! With one highly sought after ticket, generously donated to the competition by AgriFutures, we set out to find our lucky winner.
Kimi Pellosis, an Ag Science Graduate, was eventually awarded this fantastic prize. Below is a short Q&A from Kimi, where she shares some key insights from her time at evokeAG.
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and the industry that you work in?
Hi everyone! My name’s Kimberly Pellosis (Kimi) and I’m a recent graduate in the Master of Agricultural Sciences at The University of Melbourne. My goal is to drive innovative, economically efficient and sustainable practices in the Australian agricultural sector. I highly value learning from my experiences, and I am always looking for challenging opportunities to continue developing my personal approach in solving the important problems.
Who were your top 3 favourite speakers or sessions, and why?
Farmers of the future | Robots, AI and 24/7 farming: Great discussion about where we are (and should be) in the adoption curve, and great point about the unintended consequence of government funding – distinguishing the difference between internal competition and collaboration
DIPRD Masterclass | Innovating down the cost curve at Bungulla Farms: Different approach towards the management of a farming enterprise, focusing on data integration and driving costs down (therefore reducing risk), in particular focusing at the ROI and on margins, not necessarily yield as the main metric of success – since agriculture is notorious for variability and uncertainty – namely FX, futures and the weather
Agriculture 4.0|- Future of the Nation: My key takeaway – Australia has a strong reputation in food safety, but everyone in the industry (start-ups in particular) need to have a global mindset from the get-go; international investors have pinpointed that weakness as a limiting factor as to why only a handful of Australian agricultural businesses and start-ups take on the world stage
What are your thoughts on the role of machinery in the evolution of precision agriculture?
Precision agriculture wouldn’t be where it is today without it, machinery plays a crucial role in its evolution! Organisations like Case IH that provide agriculture and farm equipment will likely act as central catalysts in the advancement and development of the AgTech industry.
What idea or speaker sparked your biggest ‘ahh-haa!’ or ‘lighbulb’ moment, and why?
Spencer Maughan (Managing Partner, Finistere Ventures) mentioned a really good point:
“Australia’s big enough to be complacent, but not big enough to build business”
Australia is brimming with talent and potential, but compared to other nations we’re running behind – there’s always room for development and improvement, and as a whole we need to be connected, from every farmer in all rural towns to every professional in all state capitals.
