The challenge

No productivity, sustainability or profitability gains are possible from breeding without sources of novel genetic diversity. Acquiring this resource requires plant collection missions, curating and then maintaining the resulting accessions alongside the ongoing need to propagate and characterise the collection.

Until 2012, Australian crop genetic resources were scattered across three sites:

• the Australian Temperate Field Crops Collection;
• the Australian Winter Cereals Collection; and
• the Australian Tropical Crops Collection.

This arrangement made sense historically but created inefficiencies, given more recent innovations in information, genomic, phenotyping and crop propagation technologies.

To overcome these inefficiencies and better exploit newer technologies, GRDC and Agriculture Victoria (Ag Vic) formed a partnership in 2012 that brought the collections together under the Australian Grains Genebank (AGG).

A purpose-built AGG facility was constructed in Horsham, Victoria, in 2013 to provide a ‘one-stop shop’ for acquisition, seed storage, maintenance and distribution of genetic resources to support the research and breeding programs required to improve productivity and sustain profitability of the Australian grains industry.

The AGG allows for ongoing opportunities to integrate with newer technologies as they become available. These include technologies that accelerate the use of genetically diverse populations to overcome key production constraints using data and intensive computational methods.

A notable example is the accelerated breeding technologies that reduce generation times. Another is advances in selection technology used during breeding programs – especially genomic selection technology. Combined, these allow large quantities of genetic, field trial and phenotyping data to be used in novel ways that predict the best breeding strategy needed to make gains in important but complex traits, such as heat tolerance, based on available genetic diversity.

Besides providing ongoing long-term support for the AGG for the period between 2012 and 2022, GRDC also invested to help exploit new technology opportunities around genetic resources.

The response

Three key operational systems within the AGG were targeted for innovation as a result of GRDC investment:

1. More efficient facilities and systems were implemented around acquisition, quarantine, conservation storage, seed regeneration, germplasm characterisation and seed distribution.
2. Implementation of a national seed management database with online client request website.
3. Development of best practice quality management system for all major activities within the AGG.

Improved protocols through the Post Entry Quarantine (PEQ) facility were also implemented. The improved efficiency has seen 17,693 accessions processed using regeneration methods that have increased yields, storage shelf life and the vital information about an accession’s genetics.

All passport and inventory data were migrated into the GRIN-Global database system that provides globally integrated information about genebank accessions. Public access to query germplasm holdings was also provided.

Overall, this investment period saw the AGG distribute 143,905 accessions to 96 Australian and 67 international organisations (164 total) across 1275 seed requests, more than double the previous period (2013–2017).

The impact

This project has improved access by researchers and breeders to the quality germplasm they need to advance trait discovery and breeding efforts. It has increased understanding of the genetic nature of historical germplasm. It also more efficiently sourced germplasm from around the world in ways that better target the traits with the highest priority to the grains industry. Included are genetic tolerance and resistance traits to key environmental, disease and pest stresses.

As such, the investment has better adapted the genebank’s operations to the needs of the trait discovery pipeline and allows plant breeders to more efficiently gain access to important genetic diversity while concurrently introducing improved quality standards and more efficient processes within AGG’s core germplasm maintenance activities.

This is resulting in improved rates of genetic gain that stand to deliver more resilient crop varieties, with higher average yields and reduced grower inputs for more productive, sustainable and profitable farming systems.

An impact assessment for this investment was undertaken by Sanaz Shoghi Kalkhoran and Talia Hardaker of ACRE Economics in 2023. They reported a total research, development and extension spend of about $17.11 million (present value terms) with a total GRDC component of $12.39 million (present value terms).

Table 1 shows the estimated value of gains in crop yield and the associated gain in gross margins during the investment period.

Table 1: Estimated annual gains in yield and earnings from genetic improvement that is attributable to GRDC’s AGG investment limited to the period 2017–22. Source: ACRE Economics

The investment generated total expected net benefits estimated at a value of $106.95 million (present value terms) over 30 years using a five per cent discount rate.

This gave a net present value of $89.85 million, a benefit–cost ratio of about 6.3 to 1, an internal rate of return (IRR) of 13 per cent, and a modified IRR of 10.4 per cent.

Given the conservative assumptions made in the analysis – and that only two of the identified impacts were valued in monetary terms – the estimated returns are likely to be an underestimate of the true performance of the investment.

Impacts that were not selected for valuation include:

• increased average farm productivity and profitability through improved future varieties developed using AGG germplasm, data and support systems or through reduced farm operating costs, such as reduced fungicide applications to manage disease due to the presence of genetic resistance;
• potentially increased environmental sustainability of the Australian grain industry due to adopting more sustainable farming practices, for example, through reduced dependency on chemical inputs;
• increased scientific knowledge and research capacity associated with Australian grain genetics and breeding; and
• some contribution to increased regional community wellbeing from spill over benefits to regional communities from more productive/profitable and sustainable Australia grain industries.

More information: view GRDC’s Delivering impact case studies.