Strategic Planning

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Australian Almond Strategic Investment Plan 2017-2021

The Strategic Investment Plan (SIP) is the road map that helps guide Hort Innovation’s oversight and management of individual levy industry investment programs. The SIP lays the foundation for decision making in levy investments and represents the balanced interest of the particular industry from which the levy is collected. The very important function of the SIP is to make sure that levy investment decisions align with industry priorities.

The almond SIP

Producers in the almond industry pay levies to the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (DAWR), who is responsible for the collection, administration and disbursement of levies and charges on behalf of Australian agricultural industries.

Agricultural levies and charges are imposed on primary producers by the government at the request of industry to collectively fund R&D, marketing, biosecurity and residue testing programs.

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Levy is payable on almonds that are produced in Australia and either sold by the producer or used by the producer in the production of other goods.

Hort Innovation manages the almond levy funds which are directed to R&D investments. The R&D levy is set at a rate of 1 cent per kilogram for almond in shell, 2 cents per kilogram for shelled almonds and 1.5 cents per kilogram or almonds in shell (Nonpareil). In 2015/16 total almond R&D levy receipts were approximately $1.5 million. The R&D levy is matched by the Australian Government. The almond industry has a voluntary fund for marketing. The voluntary marketing levy is not managed by Hort Innovation and is not dealt with in this SIP.

In addition to levy funds for R&D the almond industry has established a Collective Industry Fund (CIF which is managed by Hort Innovation) being an additional voluntary grower contribution to manage development of future production systems best suited to Australian growing conditions. External to HIA, contributions to this project are also being made by the South Australian and Victorian Governments with matching contributions by the Australian Government through the ‘Rural Research for Profit’ project ‘Advanced Production Systems for Temperate Nut Industries’.

Hort Innovation has developed this SIP to assist in strategically investing the collected almond levy funds in the priority areas identified and agreed by the almond industry. The ability to deliver on all the articulated strategies (and investments) in an impactful manner will be determined by the ability of the statutory levy to provide the resources to do so. The SIP is also mindful of R&D investments through other pools and programs.

This plan represents the Australian almond industry’s collective view of its R&D needs over the next five years (2017 to 2021). This plan has been developed in consultation with Australian almond levy payers through a synthesis of pre-planning tailored for the almond industry, preparation including researching inputs for the strategy, execution to create the strategy and validation including the opportunity for levy payers to comment on the draft SIP.

The almond SIAP has responsibility for providing strategic investment advice to Hort Innovation. Both Hort Innovation and the panel will be guided by the strategic investment priorities identified within this plan.