Food production
Why investigate food production with RIEL?
Develop research capabilities in primary production, focusing on tropical biosecurity and aquaculture, cropping and sustainable pastoral industries
Foster the advancement and strengthen the development of the agricultural and aquaculture sectors across northern Australia
Develop solutions to conserve and utilise native plants and to manage introduced species in northern Australia and Southeast Asia
Study water, sediment and biota microbial quality in marine, coastal and freshwater systems
Food production
Through research projects and partnerships, RIEL leads and contributes to academic, industry and government efforts to support growth and sustainable development in the food and agriculture sector.
RIEL hosts the Research Institute for Northern Agriculture , which was established in 2022 to develop a critical mass of research excellence aimed at meeting the research, technical and innovation requirements of the agricultural and aquaculture sectors in northern Australia, including First Nations enterprises. This research covers a wide range of areas, including:
- Biology, animal behaviour and animal welfare as applied to tropical aquaculture systems
- Examination of individual differences within cultured aquaculture populations and their implications for animal welfare, production and sustainability
- Deployment of specialist technologies for behavioural and production monitoring within aquaculture systems
- New species development; bioremediation; aggression, growth, heat resilience and other key variables among cultured aquaculture stock
- Using genomic approaches to investigate population structure and gene flow of disease vectors to understand disease entry and spread in northern Australia
- Improving environmental and biosecurity surveillance and monitoring using environmental DNA
- Understanding the risk of endemic species in tropical Australia as potential vectors and hosts for diseases
- Improved diagnostics and taxonomy for agricultural and environmental biosecurity
- Investigating how crops respond to climatic factors and variations in resource availability
- Exploring innovative approaches to enhance soil fertility and crop yields through carbon farming
- Pioneering the adoption of precision agriculture techniques and technologies to enhance the sustainability of horticultural farming systems
- Promoting the use of agricultural waste in the creation of new products
- Improving food system sustainability
- Pasture systems, pasture agronomy, and plant nutrition
- Improving animal health and welfare
- Linking of soil and plant nutrition to human, animal and environmental health
RIEL is also home to ongoing research on commercial production of native plant species, the ecology of native plant species to manage their environment and promote their conservation, the management of plants in agricultural systems in northern Australia and in Southeast Asia, Vibrio ecology and shellfish safety, and microbial source tracking in drinking water. This research includes:
- Commercial production from native plant species, including producing high-value culturally identified grain from native rice, fruits from Kakadu plum, and products from other species
- Efficient and effective management of native plant communities, including of native food species, such as rehabilitation of land disturbances ranging from large-scale mining rehabilitation to restoration of rainforest on small urban reserves
- Biology of native plant species, related to commercial species, or wild food species, with the aim to understand their ecology to manage their environment and promote their conservation
- Management of plants in agricultural systems in northern Australia and in Southeast Asia
- A small knowledge sharing project on bush foods which will see communities in the NT and Timor-Leste working together on indigenous knowledge
- Vibrio ecology and shellfish safety
- Microbial source tracking in water (marine, freshwater, recreational and drinking water) and associations between water sources and opportunistic pathogens in drinking water
Research group snapshots
Tropical aquaculture
The tropical aquaculture group studies biology, animal behaviour and animal welfare as applied to tropical aquaculture systems and provides support to both industry and Indigenous communities in developing and growing aquaculture sustainably.
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Tropical biosecurity
The tropical biosecurity group aims to build research capacity in tropical biosecurity to support a science-based approach to prepare, respond and manage pests, diseases and weeds and contribute to the protection of northern Australia’s unique environment and economy.
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Cropping systems
The broadacre cropping systems group carries out multidisciplinary research with a strong foundation in crop physiology, agronomy, and soil science, aimed at enhancing the production, sustainability, and resilience of tropical cropping systems.
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Sustainable pastoral systems
The sustainable pastoral systems group applies an understanding of the plants, animals and environments that make up the pastoral systems of the Northern Territory and Asia to provide research for sustainable pastoral systems now and into the future.
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Applied plant ecology
The Applied Plant Ecology Group applies understanding of plant ecology to develop solutions to conserve and utilise native plants, and to manage introduced species.
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Bioscience North Australia
We conduct high impact research and customized research consultancies that focus on detecting and interpreting microbiological threats in a complex world. We specialise in microbiological and molecular analyses in aquatic and terrestrial environments, including animal-microbe interactions, and analyses of sediment, water and biota.
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