Current opportunities
Current opportunities
Listed are the opportunities currently available. Prospective tenderers are encouraged to read the Terms and Conditions before applying.
Request for Tender Terms and Conditions apply to all RFT’s where tenderers are required to submit an application.
The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) began its operations on 1 July 2023. Contract Service Providers of GRDC (as defined by the NACC Act 2022) will be under the jurisdiction of the NACC if a corrupt conduct issue arises.
19 results found:
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Reference number: PROC-9177152 RFT
Biosecurity Contingency Plans
Contingency Plans (CPs) are of importance for biosecurity risk mitigation to maintain Australia's high plant health status, which is crucial for continued trade and market access. These plans play a role in preparing for incursion response activities to Emergency Plant Pest (EPP) detections and the management of exotic plant pests and disease arrivals in Australia. They act as a reference document that can be either pest specific, or at a higher order, and contain technical and operational information that supports efficient decision-making early in an emergency response. A recent gap analysis document commissioned by GRDC reiterates the critical role of CPs in biosecurity preparedness and the need for ongoing investment in creation and updates of these documents. Consequently, 26 CPs are required to be developed and/or updated so that all current grains high priority plant pests are addressed.
Closing date and timeThursday 19 December 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateTuesday 19 November 2024Last updatedTuesday 19 November 2024
Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177162 RFT
GRDC National Grower Network - Milling Oats agronomy for the Esperance Port Zone
This investment would utilise both small plot trials, larger paddock scale trial strips and case studies to investigate different agronomic options. Situations such as deeper early sowing to take advantage of early moisture, seeding oats early for frost risk mitigation in lower lying frost prone areas of the landscape and the potential use of milling oats in areas of paddocks or farms that suffer from transient waterlogging in season compared to alternative cereal crops need investigation. Extension of the findings from this project should also include engagement with market experts such as CBH to determine future market access and pricing relevant to the Esperance port zone.
Closing date and timeMonday 06 January 2025, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateMonday 18 November 2024Last updatedMonday 18 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177168 RFT
GRDC National Grower Network - Nitrogen Banking study and regional roadshow
At a number of recent NGN Forums the topic of Nitrogen (N) Banking and the fit for N Banking in different parts of the state has been raised as a priority. GRDC are already investing in a number of different N Banking scenarios around the state via Ri$kwise and the Ri$kwise linked SEP2311-001SAX NGN- Comparison of nitrogen demand and banking strategies to aid N decision making in Esperance. N Banking has been researched extensively in the Eastern States of Australia and many learnings can be derived from this body of work that have relevance to the Western Region. Private companies have also investigated N Banking. Previous GRDC investments into Nitrogen could also be drawn upon to determine the relevance of N banking to certain parts of Western Australia.
Closing date and timeTuesday 07 January 2025, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateMonday 18 November 2024Last updatedTuesday 19 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177149 RFT
GRDC National Grower Network - Coordination and administration services for the Western Region
The delivery of efficient and impactful NGN forums by Grower Relations Managers (GRMs) has been enabled by the engagement of service providers to provide administrative and organisational support in each region. The service providers have access to a team of staff to undertake key activities at peak times, bring a broad network of growers, grower groups, advisers and agronomists. These service agreements are ending in 2025, and this investment proposal is designed to provide flexible engagements (GRDC NGN and industry events) with a coordinated and regionally nuanced approach over the next three years.
Closing date and timeFriday 31 January 2025, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateFriday 15 November 2024Last updatedFriday 15 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177160 RFT
GRDC National Grower Network - Facilitation training for staff
The National Grower Network (NGN) program is designed to capture and respond promptly to grain grower issues and opportunities, ensure GRDC is investing in locally relevant research, and help drive adoption of R&D outputs. In doing so, the NGN also educates stakeholders of GRDC’s role and portfolio of investments and increases visibility of GRDC. The NGN helps to capture ideas, issues, constraints and opportunities for RD&E to enhance grower profitability. To achieve this, the team, with support from a service provider engage with stakeholders through forums that are open to all growers, advisers, researchers and industry parties.To help GRDC reach the overall outcome for this program an additional output is to provide meeting facilitation and engagement training to upskill GRDC staff and panels is required. Key activities will include organising and delivering workshops and coaching sessions that focus on preparing for and facilitating forums/meetings, assessment of individual strengths and weaknesses, and targets for continuous improvement.
Closing date and timeFriday 31 January 2025, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateFriday 15 November 2024Last updatedMonday 18 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177148 RFT
GRDC National Grower Network - Coordination and administration services for the Southern Region
The National Grower Network (NGN) program is designed to capture and respond promptly to grain grower issues and opportunities, ensure GRDC is investing in locally relevant research, and help drive adoption of R&D outputs. In doing so, the NGN also educates stakeholders of GRDC’s role and portfolio of investments and increases visibility of GRDC. The NGN helps to capture ideas, issues, constraints and opportunities for RD&E to enhance grower profitability. To achieve this, the team, with support from a service provider engage with stakeholders through forums that are open to all growers, advisers, researchers and industry parties. GRDC is looking to engage with a service provider to coordinate and administer to continue to deliver the NGN program. Key activities will include organisation, promotion and coordination of a series of NGN forums throughout the Southern Region. This will include administration tasks associated with the events, including minute taking, evaluation and registration of attendees. Close collaboration with the Grower and Stakeholder Engagement team will ensure these activities are delivered professionally across the Southern Region.
Closing date and timeFriday 31 January 2025, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateFriday 15 November 2024Last updatedFriday 15 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177158 RFT
Farm Practices Survey 2025 and 2027
The Farm Practices Survey is planned to obtain up-to-date information on the practices of Australian grain growers. The direct survey format has been used by GRDC since 2008 to collect quantitative data to monitor and evaluate key on-farm management practices, including grain growers' adoption of various farming systems. The analysis of this information helps to develop the organisation’s understanding of how these practices drive productivity, profitability, sustainability and environmental improvements on grain farms. The survey also helps GRDC understand the impact of its investments, identify gaps in adoption of R&D outputs, and guide future investment priorities. The Farm Practices Survey is one of several core data assets considered by the 2023-28 RD&E Plan’s Data and Insights Enabler and is anticipated to deliver a variety of tracking inputs for the plan’s Benefits Register.
Closing date and timeMonday 09 December 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateTuesday 12 November 2024Last updatedMonday 18 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177150 RFT
NGN - Adopting innovative solutions for challenging soils
Cropping into sodic/dispersive, kopi and transient saline soils impacts plant available water, crop germination, establishment and ultimately yield of all crops. There are currently limited economical options to ameliorate, mitigate or manage these soil constraints. Growers in some areas have not been exposed to the GRDC/DPIRD work of David Hall. While it appears that these are totally different soil constraints, it appears the treatments that were trialled as part of the sodic soils project (DAW1902-001RTX - Increased grower profitability on soils with sodicity and transient salinity in the eastern grain belt of the Western Region) will create improvements for sodic/dispersive, kopi and saline soils.
Closing date and timeFriday 06 December 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateFriday 08 November 2024Last updatedFriday 08 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177145 RFT
NGN - Understanding herbicide residues on challenging soil types within the southern region
National Grower Network forums throughout South Australia have identified that herbicide residues are a concern for growers. It is estimated that between 20-30% of paddocks across Australia contain soil-bourne herbicide residues that constrain crop selection, and 10% of paddocks have residues that could result in crop damage and economic losses to growers. Whilst the mechanisms and drivers of herbicide breakdown are relatively well known, there is a lack of decision support to predict the level of herbicide remaining in the soil and the risks to crop, especially on challenging and uncommon soil types. Currently, growers lack confidence in the relevance of plant back periods published on chemical labels for their soil types, particularly in crops that are more sensitive to certain herbicides, such as lentils. This program of work will support grower and adviser understanding of how herbicides interact with their pre-sowing decisions on the crop types or varieties to be planted. This information can also assist growers to make informed decisions about in crop and pre-emergent chemistry applications to avoid plant back issues.
Closing date and timeMonday 02 December 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateMonday 04 November 2024Last updatedFriday 15 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: RFT
Low Emissions Intensity Farming Systems (LEIFS) Initiative
The Australian grains industry faces significant risks due to its unpreparedness to meet escalating expectations for reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the impacts of climate change. The agricultural sector, accounting for 16.8% of national GHG emissions in 2020-21, needs scientific approaches to monitor, manage and report emissions to remain competitive. Despite many products claiming to reduce emissions, most lack credible evidence. A situational analysis of the Australian grains industry highlights the need for understanding GHG accounts, emissions intensity (kg CO2-equivalent/tonne grain) and low-emission agricultural practices. Additionally, there is a pressing need for improved national coordination and collaboration to enhance efficiency, reduce duplication and improve the quality of research and data availability for adopting low emissions strategies. In response, the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) has launched the Low Emission Intensity Farming Systems (LEIFS) Initiative to demonstrate the benefits of greenhouse gas (GHG) monitoring and management at the farm scale in order to lower emissions intensity, improve production efficiency and capture market value. The LEIFS Initiative will build knowledge, tools, technology and data through an information and knowledge platform. LEIFS will foster collaboration, provide practical options for reducing emissions and establish a trusted national body of evidence to support grower decisions, regulations and policies for the Australian grains industry. The Initiative endeavours to instil confidence among growers and advisers to participate in GHG markets and credentialling opportunities. This requires understanding data requirements and associated risks to make informed entry decisions. The Initiative includes five integrated programs, one of which is subject to this Tender request. Applicants are invited to apply for the Program Office.
Closing date and timeMonday 25 November 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateMonday 28 October 2024Last updatedThursday 14 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177126 RFT
Development of genetic selection tools for improved canola acid soils tolerance - Phase 2
Canola is Australia's third largest crop by value and the most important break crop for cereal production. At low pH exchangeable aluminium (Al3+), manganese (Mn3+) and hydrogen (H+) ions get solubilised into a solution form. Canola in Western Australia is mostly grown on sandy-textured soils, which are prone to acidity and contain Aluminium ions at concentrations that are toxic to the plant and at concentrations > 10 mg/kg below 10cm can reduce yield by > 50% in low rainfall environments. Aluminium can rapidly inhibit root growth at micromolar concentrations New canola varieties with soil acid tolerance can support management approaches such as liming to significantly raise canola production on acidic soils in regions with soil pH < 4.8 at 10cm. This includes large areas of Western Australia and significant grain production hectares in South East NSW, Wimmera and Central Vic, Southern Vic, Tasmania, Lower EP, York Peninsula, Mid North SA and Southern SA. Whilst surface acidity can be ameliorated by applying lime, it is more challenging to incorporate lime deeper and can take several years before these soils are productive.
Closing date and timeFriday 20 December 2024, at 02:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateThursday 24 October 2024Last updatedMonday 11 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177143 RFT
Communication and Extension - Weed Management Initiative
Weeds are a major threat to the productivity, profitability, and sustainability of Australian agriculture, recently estimated to cost $4.1 billion annually in crop losses and control measures. This investment seeks delivery of weed management strategies, nationally, to ensure Australian grain growers have continuing access to innovative, diverse, and cost reducing options. The Weed Management Initiative (WMI) is a federated model, with nodes across each Grain Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) region, aiming to deliver advanced weed management practices to Australian grain growers. It consists of five key programs covering weed management, herbicide resistance from evolutionary dynamics to practical mitigation strategies, communication, and capacity building. The initiative will foster collaboration among research institutions, ensuring long-term investment and efforts in weed science. The WMI's communication, extension, and adoption program is central to its success, focusing on effectively disseminating research outputs and facilitating their adoption by growers. This program will integrate social science methodologies to drive practice changes and measure the impact of extension efforts. Additionally, it will collaborate with the Australian Analytics for the Grains Industry (AAGI) to assess the effectiveness of its communication and extension activities. The WMI emphasizes regional responsiveness, practical demonstrations, and timely delivery of cutting-edge weed management information to growers.
Closing date and timeThursday 21 November 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateMonday 21 October 2024Last updatedFriday 15 November 2024
Tender status: Closed
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Reference number: PROC-9177144 RFT
Minimising the economic impact of key pests: earwigs, millipedes, and slaters
Earwigs, millipedes, and slaters are pests increasingly causing significant damage to grain crops in Australia. Changing farming practices, like increased stubble retention and reduced tillage, have contributed to the rising prevalence of these pests, yet effective control options remain limited. Growers often struggle to predict when and where pest outbreaks will occur, and current management practices do not always provide reliable results. To address these challenges, GRDC is investing to develop targeted, practical solutions for managing these pests in grain crops. The successful tenderer will be expected to conduct innovative research that closes knowledge gaps, deliver practical pest management strategies, and provide tools to help growers make informed decisions about pest control. Key activities will include conducting trials to better understand pest behaviour and life cycles, developing forecasting tools to predict outbreaks, and creating integrated management strategies that combine chemical and non-chemical control options. Close collaboration with an advisory group of growers and agronomists will ensure that the strategies developed are practical and field-tested. Educational resources and tools, such as identification guides and decision-support tools, will also be developed to assist growers and advisers in effectively managing pest risks. The ultimate goal is to help Australian grain growers reduce crop losses, improve profitability, and ensure sustainable farming practices by providing reliable and adaptable pest control solutions.
Closing date and timeThursday 28 November 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateMonday 21 October 2024Last updatedFriday 15 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177140 RFT
Coordination – Weed Management Initiative
Weeds are a major threat to the productivity, profitability, and sustainability of Australian agriculture, recently estimated to cost $4.1 billion annually in crop losses and control measures. This investment seeks delivery of weed management strategies, nationally, to ensure Australian grain growers have continuing access to innovative, diverse, and cost reducing options. The Weed Management Initiative (WMI) is a federated model, with nodes across each Grain Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) region, aiming to deliver advanced weed management practices to Australian grain growers. It consists of five key programs covering weed management, herbicide resistance from evolutionary dynamics to practical mitigation strategies, communication, and capacity building. The initiative will foster collaboration among research institutions, ensuring long-term investment and efforts in weed science. A coordination role will facilitate the WMI activities, travel and reporting.
Closing date and timeThursday 21 November 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateFriday 18 October 2024Last updatedFriday 15 November 2024 Tender status: Closed
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Reference number: PROC-9177138 RFT
A review of GRDC’s historic and current grain legume D&E investment
There have been four major demonstration and extension investments running since 2020 which have linked to the National pulse adaptability investment (NAPA). These projects have been conducting small plot and paddock scale trials to improve the agronomic understanding of how to the reduce the economic yield gap of grain legume crops. The project teams have also been undertaking economic analysis of the trial data to ensure growers can see the economic value of grain legumes to their overall farm profitability, both in the year of crop and the benefits to following crops. This consultancy is required to review the current projects, analyse the impact of the projects and offer suggestions for the pathway forward in pulse investments for GRDC. The consultancy will be open tender to evaluate the market for organisations able to undertake reviews of this style of investments.
Closing date and timeFriday 22 November 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateFriday 18 October 2024Last updatedMonday 11 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: PROC-9177133 RFT
Cold plasma treatment of wheat and canola for enhanced plant growth, vigour and yield
Crop establishment is a critical phase in the production cycle as successful crop growth, development and yield are dependent on its success. Poor emergence and uneven establishment reduces crop growth and yield. During germination and emergence seeds may be subject to stresses such as soil water availability, soil-borne pathogens and pests. Similarly growing plants are also exposed to biotic and abiotic stresses. Finding ways to mitigate these negative impacts and potentially increasing yields offers growers a means of reducing their reliance on chemical products and achieving greater profitability. The use of cold plasma (CP) technology in this regard offers such a solution.
Closing date and timeWednesday 27 November 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateWednesday 16 October 2024Last updatedThursday 14 November 2024 Tender status: Open
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Reference number: RFT-2024-NoLox1219 RFT
Commercialisation of NoLox 1219 soybean variety
GRDC is seeking applications to licence a new soybean variety, NoLox 1219 for commercialisation in Australia. NoLox 1219 is a new soybean variety bred for human consumption markets.
Closing date and timeMonday 18 November 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateMonday 14 October 2024Last updatedTuesday 15 October 2024 Tender status: Closed
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Reference number: PROC-9177131 RFT
Development of soil water repellency management options for Australian grain growers
Soil water repellency (SWR) is a condition that makes soils temporarily resist wetting, restricting water availability for crops. SWR is associated with the presence of organic material in the soil, with incidence and severity influenced by plant type and species, crop rotation, stubble load and breakdown. SWR affects more than 5M hectares in Western and Southern Australia and costs growers an estimated $100 million per annum through reduced yield due to reduced crop germination, nutrient storage and availability, and plant-available water. Currently growers use expensive and challenging techniques to manage SWR, such as strategic tillage, spading ($150/ha on average conducted every 3-5 years), clay application ($800/ha on average conducted once) on or near row seeding or annual applications of wetters (up to $22/ha applied annually). Given the unpredictable and transient nature of SWR alongside a lack of understanding where and when to target soil amelioration, wetters are applied as an insurance option, despite current wetter chemistry being inadequate to overcome SWR and under certain instances could be exacerbating the issue. The outcome of this proposed research will allow growers to better manage and mitigate the impact of SWR through increased understanding of crop and pasture species, stubble, and farming systems on the expression of SWR, in contrasting seasons and soil types.
Closing date and timeMonday 18 November 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateFriday 11 October 2024Last updatedFriday 11 October 2024 Tender status: Closed
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Reference number: PROC-9177104 RFT
High throughput phenotyping methods for functional quality traits in wheat
GRDC is inviting innovative applications to develop a cutting-edge high-throughput technology for screening wheat grain and dough for quality traits. While previous efforts have successfully identified certain grain quality traits, this tender seeks to push the boundaries further. We are looking for proposals that can pioneer a technical method or create an instrument prototype capable of predicting not only dough quality but also, potentially, baking quality. This technology should seamlessly integrate with genomic selection tools to ensure easy adoption and use by breeders within breeding programs. This investment encourages collaboration among breeders, food technologists, and technical experts to foster a multidisciplinary approach. Additionally, partnerships with international organizations are strongly encouraged to help build capacity in this field within Australia. GRDC is seeking a 1:1 cash co-contribution ratio for this contract. Successful projects will address key knowledge gaps and contribute to the advancement of wheat breeding technologies.
Closing date and timeThursday 12 December 2024, at 05:00 PM ACT local timeRelease dateThursday 05 September 2024Last updatedFriday 06 September 2024 Tender status: Open