The Australian grain industry has posted another successful five years on the back of grower ingenuity, innovation and resilience, according to GrainGrowers’ 2026 State of the Australian Grain Industry Report.
Released every five years and the only one of its kind produced for the Australian grain industry, the report analyses data from a range of sources and identifies trends, risks and opportunities for the sector.
GrainGrowers Chair Rhys Turton said despite an everchanging growing and operating environment, the report showed continued productivity growth across the industry with Australia’s five largest grain production seasons on record occurring in the past six years.
“These long-term productivity gains are underpinned by growers’ ability to adopt new technologies, maintain sustainable farming practises and expertly manage climate volatility,” Mr Turton said.
“Importantly, the volume of grain grown has increased significantly while the area planted has only increased modestly, which shows growers are making the most of every hectare.”
But the past five years have not been without their challenges as new trends emerged which were far less pronounced five years ago.
“The risks posed by global volatility have heightened in recent years, driven by geopolitical tensions, ongoing supply chain disruptions and a renewed rise in protectionist and interventionist trade policies in key markets,” Mr Turton said.
“It has never been more important for the industry to work with government to address the challenges and support growers in realising the opportunities before them.”
Mr Turton pointed to the war in the Middle East and the impact on Australia’s supply chains as an example of this in action.
“The immediate impacts of the conflict were particularly concerning for growers as they prepared to plant their winter crop and we saw government move quickly to address the short-term issues,” Mr Turton said.
“Since then, commitments have been made as part of the Budget to increase onshore storage and refining of fuels, increase onshore fertiliser production and support the development of low carbon liquid fuels.
“It is critical these long-term commitments are delivered on to address critical supply chain vulnerabilities and protect Australia’s food security, while also leveraging the proven locally-produced feedstocks to support a new domestic biofuel industry.”
The full 2026 State of the Australian Grain Industry Report is available here.
ENDS
Key Facts
- The five-year production average has increased from 44m tonnes in 2020-21 to 64m tonnes in 2025-26 – an increase of 45%.
- The sector’s average economic contribution over the last five years has been $27 billion per annum.
- There are 37,000 grain farmers across Australia on 18,000 farms – 69 percent of farms employ workers on farm.
- Five of the last 6 years have been the biggest production years on record.
- The sector has continued to increase the volume of grain produced at a faster rate than the area of land farmed.
- Australia is a major producer and exporter in the global grain sector, exporting 39.6 million tonnes in 2024-25.
- Australia’s five biggest export markets on a volume basis include China, Indonesia, Japan, Philippines and Vietnam.
- Australia is responsible is for:
- 10% of global wheat exports
- 20% of global canola and barley exports
- 40% of global chickpea exports