Supercharging Queensland’s cotton industry

• The Crisafulli Government is delivering a boost to supercharge the future of the cotton industry in Queensland.
• $7.2 million Future Cotton partnership announced between industry and the Crisafulli Government.
• Future Cotton focuses on productivity, sustainability and tackling key industry challenges with projects to support growers in Goondiwindi, Emerald and Darling Downs regions.
• The Crisafulli Government is delivering a plan for Queensland’s future, and a fresh start for Queensland.  

The Crisafulli Government is delivering for Queensland’s cotton industry, announcing a $7.2 million partnership with the Cotton Research and Development Corporation to boost grower support, research and help drive sustainable growth.  

It is one of the ways the Crisafulli Government is delivering for Queensland, with a plan for Queensland’s future and the state’s $1 billion cotton industry.  

The “Future Cotton: Innovation and Impact for Sustainability, Biosecurity and Growth” program aims to grow on-farm cotton productivity through targeted research, development and extension (RD&E) and will be focused on pest and disease management, AgTech adoption, climate resilience and emissions reduction. 

The project increases research and extension capacity across key cotton regions of Goondiwindi, Emerald, Toowoomba and Darling Downs, with a team focused on addressing the most pressing challenges and delivering outcomes for the entire industry.  

Supercharging scientific research and development of food and fibre production is one of the ways the Crisafulli Government is working towards boosting Queensland’s primary industries value to $30 billion by 2030.  

Within one year of forming government the Crisafulli Government has delivered a landmark 25-year blueprint Primary Industries Prosper 2050 which was developed through the largest stakeholder collaboration industry has seen in at least a decade. 

Primary Industries Minister Tony Perrett said the Crisafulli Government was delivering the fresh start Queenslanders voted for, exactly as promised. 

“We are delivering a plan for Queensland’s Future by working alongside Queensland’s billion-dollar cotton industry to ensure its future prosperity,” Minister Perrett said. 

“Cotton is one of Queensland’s most valuable and innovative agricultural industries, employing thousands of Queenslanders and producing 40% of Australia’s cotton,” Minister Perrett said.  

“With a gross value production (GVP) of over $1 billion, we know the cotton industry will be a key player in the government’s goal to achieve a farm gate output of $30 billion by 2030. 

“The Future Cotton partnership is about investing in industry-led programs to increase sustainability and support our growers to get the best outcome for their crops every year. 

“This partnership backs our growers with the science, skills and tools they need to improve performance, tackle emerging threats, and lead the way on innovation, sustainability and AgTech adoption for the future.  

“While we are delivering this partnership, there is much more to be done to deliver for Queensland’s future, and we remain committed to delivering the fresh start we promised.” 

CRDC Executive Director Allan Williams said the partnership was about “turning research into results” and would deliver practical on-farm outcomes while strengthening the cotton industry’s capacity to lead positive change. 

“This partnership with DPI enables us to deliver focused, regional support to growers through expert technical leads, strategic research capability, and better extension,” Mr Williams said. 

“We’re tackling key issues like insecticide resistance, sustainable pest management, and adapting agronomic practice to improve climate resilience in a way that’s fully integrated across the whole cotton system.” 

ENDS 

MEDIA CONTACT: Nicole Bond 0417 199 369