The Netherlands is a modern world agri-food vision, 185th the size of Australia but producing 810 times more export earnings per hectare and nearly three times more agri-food export earnings. This report delves into ways Australia’s agrifood sector can learn from the Dutch.

The report, which is a collaboration between AgFunder and KPMG, is a reflection on the lessons learnt during the AgriFood Traction Tour, a tour of Australian agrifood business leaders to the Netherlands in order to discover how a tiny European country pushed itself to be the world’s second largest agrifood exporter by value.

• The sheer investment into leading edge technology development is what sets the Netherlands apart from Australia.
• More needs to be done to foster collaboration between academics and entrepreneurs in Australia, reflecting the clustering of complementary businesses and institutions in the Netherlands.
• The quality and diversity of Australia’s emerging talent is a core strength, but the country must focus on how to better network tomorrow’s startup and tech leaders.