The Australian grain sector has today released its first-ever Grain Sustainability Framework (GSF) Annual Report, establishing a national baseline for key environmental, social and economic indicators and highlighting industry progress in this area.
The GSF is an initiative governed by the GSF Council with responsibility for strategic oversight and direction of the framework. The Council comprises an independent chair, board and executive representatives from GrainGrowers and Grain Producers Australia, with GRDC participating as an observer. The GSF Inaugural Annual Report marks a major milestone in performance reporting, establishing Australia’s first industry wide definition of sustainable grain production. The report covers the areas of planet, product, people, and prosperity – and a total of 12 topics within those themes.
GSF Council Chair, Tess Herbert, said the framework, developed in close consultation with growers, stakeholders, customers and markets, had laid the foundations for a resilient, innovative, and sustainable future.
“The grains industry faces rapid change in the form of shifting global markets, evolving consumer and stakeholder expectations, and climate variability. Our role is not only to respond but to help shape the conditions for growers to thrive.”
“This report represents a line in the sand, demonstrating progress and showing where the industry now stands. The framework and framework reporting will evolve over time, guided by the feedback and the insights we gather as an industry,” she said.
Ms Herbert said the Annual Report demonstrates increasing adoption of sustainable practices among Australian growers.
She cited some examples of progress, including the fact that almost nine out of ten growers now use zero and low-tillage practices, while 81% of cropped land retains stubble, supporting soil structure, water retention, and erosion control.
In addition, total net GHG emissions are 50% lower and emissions intensity has fallen by 64% compared with the 2006 baseline: progress supported by efficiency gains and Australian growers’ increased adoption of practices like vegetation management planning and environmental assurance programs.
“While sustainability is far wider than just these examples, they are indicative of some of the progress being made across the Australian grain industry.”
The themes and topics in the report are based on a comprehensive materiality study conducted in 2024, extensive stakeholder consultation across the Australian grains industry value chain and rigorous evaluation by the Grain Sustainability Framework Steering Group in 2025.
The materiality study considered financial impact, regulatory relevance, public attention, and stakeholder importance, assessing each topic based on its impact on the industry and the level of influence the industry can exert.
Topics that significantly affect profitability, costs, or risk, and where the grains sector can drive meaningful change, were prioritised to ensure a focus on the issues most critical to both business performance and sustainability outcomes.
Some of the issues covered in the report include:
Planet - The report highlighted significant environmental performance gains across soil health, resource use and GHG emissions. Findings include: 87% of growers now use zero or low tillage, supporting the protection of soil structure and erosion reduction; and 56% of farms have vegetation management plans, up from 36% a decade ago.
Product - Quality and safety remain hallmarks of Australian grain, with 99.1% of tested grain samples achieving compliance with maximum residue limits (MRLs). In addition, growers’ participation in quality assurance or environmental assurance programs has risen from 13% to 43% over the past decade.
People – Baseline data across safety, wellbeing, diversity and inclusion show only 56% of grain farms have an onfarm workplace safety program, with 28 notifiable fatalities and 2,997 lost time injury claims across grain growing operations over the past five years. In terms of diversity, the workforce gender ratio is 74% male and 26% female, with 2.4% of the workforce speaking a language other than English at home.
Prosperity – As 5-year rolling averages, Total Factor Productivity (TFP) is now 166% above the 1978 baseline, while climate-adjusted TFP - that accounts for climate impacts- is 63% higher than the 1989 baseline. Growers recorded an average 1.2% rate of return excluding capital growth, rising to 11.3% when land value gains are included. Yield mapping now used across 74% of cropped area—up from 29% in 2014—reflecting the industry’s growing use of data-driven decision-making.
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A full copy of the report can be downloaded from the following LINK.
Media Contact
Chris Rowley, Media Manager
P: 0415 140 253 | enquiry@grainsustainabilityframework.com.au