Australia’s Rural Research and Development Corporations (RDCs) sit at the centre of our innovation system. The RDCs have a clear purpose: to drive productivity, profitability and sustainability for industry levy payers and Australian taxpayers. Across the RDCs, more than a billion dollars of industry, private and public funding is invested in research, development, extension, adoption, market access and system capability across Australia’s food and fibre sectors each year.

This report sets out how that system works in practice. It demonstrates how the RDCs translate investment into measurable productivity outcomes across a selection of the drivers of Australia’s agriculture, fishing and forestry productivity: sustainability and emissions reduction, trade and market access, technology and adoption, biosecurity readiness, workforce capability, and First Nations engagement.