RICE 
4 pages
Published: 9 Dec 2025
Author(s): Professor John Hornbuckle
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Water availability remains the defining challenge for the Australian rice industry, particularly in the southern Murray-Darling Basin where secure irrigation is essential for rice production. This project addressed this issue by advancing cost-effective irrigation automation and smart sensing solutions, enabled by recent improvements in farm connectivity and IoT technologies. The project developed and refined automation tools in partnership with growers, industry specialists and extension services to ensure they were affordable, practical and adaptable to farm conditions.
Key highlights
– The project successfully developed low-cost smart sensing and automation packages designed specifically for rice irrigation farms.
– Creation of a knowledge hub (irrigationautomation.org).
– The widespread adoption of these tools has the potential to improve profitability, strengthen long-term sustainability and make rice farming more attractive to the next generation of skilled professionals.
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