Emerging Nutrition Agronomist ambitious about transforming food for health

As consumers become increasingly aware of what’s in the food they eat and how it’s grown, producers are feeling the pressure to get ahead of the market shift.

This transformation demands a deeper understanding of how to produce beautiful, nutrient dense food with a higher sale value – an objective that is front of mind for emerging nutrition agronomist, James White.

As the sixth generation of a family farming enterprise in the lush landscapes of North East Victoria, James understands the critical link between agriculture, human health, and the environment.

After receiving one of the coveted Horizon Scholarships offered by the rural research and development corporation AgriFutures Australia in 2023, James is now feeling confident to enter the industry in pursuit of a bold mission: transform our food for better health.

His passion for nutrition agronomy has been shaped by hands-on experiences in vineyards, dairies, and grain farms throughout Victoria and Southern NSW, revealing the potential to reduce reliance on chemical management while enhancing food quality and nutrient density.

“Improving how we manage crop nutrition delivers a real possibility to not only save farmers money but also improve the quality of the end product,” said James.

“Gains in nitrogen use efficiency are critical from both an environmental and financial perspective – its technical aspects like this that I see a solution for,” he said.

Sponsored by the Southern NSW Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub, James is squeezing the most of his opportunities to observe agriculture up-close. Already having visited Cairns and Adelaide for a Horizon Scholar networking summit and a Lucerne conference, respectively, James is now hastily packing for a trip to Albany in Western Australia where he’ll be spending some quality hands-on time with an agronomist.

“I didn’t realise how good the scholarship actually could be,” said James.

“I’d never been up to Queensland, so to see mango and coffee production in action was pretty cool, as was the Great Barrier Reef excursion. I’ve also been able to meet people from all over the country, which has opened a lot of doors,” he said.

The Southern NSW Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub places a great emphasis on investing in future leaders to help grow the future workforce in agricultural extension, advice and on-farm labour.

“James is very enterprising in the way he approaches his career,” stated Nicholas Morgan, Operations and Partnerships Manager at the SNSW Innovation Hub.

“The way he’s already working in ag consultancy while he’s studying is very impressive and we’re really glad to have him involved in the Hub,” he said.

With another two weeks of industry placement up his sleeve and an overseas work and travel year on the cards, James’ flourishing interest in nutrition agronomy will not go unfledged, and he looks forward to influencing positive changes in human health.

Find out more about the AgriFutures Horizon Scholarship

The Southern NSW Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub is funded by the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund.