We are responsible for planning, investing in and overseeing research, development and extension (RD&E) for 25 leviable grain crops.

We’re a corporate Commonwealth entity established under the Primary Industries Research and Development Act 1989 (PIRD Act) and our portfolio department is the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

As a corporate Commonwealth entity, we’re subject to the requirements of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act) and other Commonwealth legislation.

Our purpose

To invest in RD&E to create enduring profitability for Australian grain growers.

• Invest – we invest to deliver a return on investment to grain growers.
• Research, Development and Extension – we make investments in RD&E activities in line with the objectives of the Primary Industries Research and Development Act 1989 (Cth) (PIRD Act).
• Create – we invest to develop innovative approaches to constraints and opportunities and facilitate their adoption.
• Enduring – we invest to drive long-term, sustainable impact on grain-growing businesses and their profitability.
• Profitability – we focus on grower profits, not just productivity.
• Australian grain growers – we exist to deliver value to Australian grain growers. While not all growers will benefit from every investment, we aim to deliver impact to all growers.

Our primary objective is to drive the discovery, development and delivery of world-class innovation to enhance the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Australian grain growers and benefit the industry and the wider community.

The resources available to GRDC for investment in RD&E predominantly arise from levies paid by grain growers and contributions made by the Australian Government, with additional income from interest, royalties and grants.

Funding

Our funding comes from levies paid by grain growers and contributions paid by the Australian Government. The levies are collected at the first point of sale and are a percentage of the sale value of 25 crops:

• wheat
• coarse grains — barley, oats, sorghum, maize, triticale, millets/panicums, cereal rye and canary seed
• pulses — lupins, field peas, chickpeas, faba beans, vetch, peanuts, mungbeans, navy beans, pigeon peas, soybeans, cowpeas and lentils
• oilseeds — canola, sunflower, safflower and linseed.

The Australian Government matches the levy contributions up to a limit of 0.5 per cent of the three-year rolling average of the gross value of production of the 25 leviable crops.

Other sources, including interest, royalties, and grants, contribute a smaller proportion of our income.

Our Minister and department

We are accountable to the Australian Parliament through the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. The portfolio Minister is Hon Julie Collins MP and the Assistant Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry is Senator the Hon. Anthony Chisholm.

For more information, read about our accountability.