Victorian agronomist Michael Moodie and extension and training consultant Jeanette Long have each won a GRDC industry award for the southern region.

Winner of the 2023 GRDC Seed of Light – South: Mr Michael Moodie. Photo: Neil Jacobs

Mr Moodie has been awarded the Seed of Light award, and Ms Long has received the Recognising and Rewarding Excellence award.

The GRDC Seed of Light award recognises the outstanding contribution, dedication and commitment of individuals to communicating research outcomes to people working in the grains industry.

Mr Moodie was presented the Seed of Light award at the GRDC Grains Research Update in Adelaide by GRDC Southern Panel Chair Mr Andrew Russell.

“Mr Moodie has played an enormous role serving the Mallee region as an agronomist,” Mr Russell says.

“His absolute strength is in the relationships he has built with growers and his ability to listen and learn and to pass on and share knowledge effectively.

“Everybody who talks about Mr Moodie does so with a smile – he is held in such high regard across the industry – and he has made a huge difference to growers in a challenging environment.”

Through his close involvement with the Mallee Sustainable Farming group and his Frontier Farming Systems business based in Mildura, Mr Moodie has helped lead key research development and extension programs through the South Australian and Victorian Mallee region, delivering profitable practice change alternatives to growers.

Across the region, Mr Moodie has championed the use of break crops and helped increase the adoption of pulses, which is having a flow-on benefit of increased cereal production, and whole-farm profitability.

His passionate involvement in the GRDC-supported sandy soils project has helped deliver field work and demonstrated the relevance of research outcomes with growers and advisors.

In his acceptance speech Mr Moodie emphasised the importance of partnerships.

“I really value the partnerships that help get the research done, whether it’s Mallee Sustainable Farming or all the incredible researchers and research organisations we go along with,” says Mr Moodie.

GRDC Southern Panel member Lou Flohr (left) and 2023 GRDC Recognising and Rewarding Excellence – South award winner Jeanette Long (right). Photo: Neil Jacobs

Ms Jeanette Long was presented with the award for Recognising and Rewarding Excellence by GRDC Southern Panel member Lou Flohr.

“Jeanette has built and delivered training programs to develop the skills of people working in agriculture for more than 30 years,” says Ms Flohr.

“Her leadership and dedication to excellence in extension has helped many people learn and lifted the performance of the industry.”

Ms Long's role as facilitator, trainer, coach, business partner and farmer has seen her put people first across her varied career roles. She is a champion for helping others succeed and a tireless advocate for learning.

Through delivering a range of training programs, and assisting organisations and farm families with succession, strategic and business planning, Ms Long has continued to support farming businesses to succeed.

Amidst her various leadership roles across the grains and broader agricultural sector, Ms Long also served on the GRDC Board.

Ms Long says she was grateful to have worked in agriculture – an industry that she loves.

Listen to Jeanette’s interview in the GRDC Podcast: In Conversation.