The National Renewables in Agriculture Conference and Expo started in 2019 and was developed due to a need to provide credible, independent advice to farmers about how they could replace diesel and electricity on their farms with renewables. It has been designed to address the barriers to the uptake of renewables and aims to share stories directly from farmers using renewables with others. The Conference has evolved to increase knowledge about the opportunities for farmers in the national energy transition, what benefits regional communities can advocate for and how long term meaningful and positive change will be achieved.

Cathy McGowan, Chair Agrifutures, former Independent and sixth generation farmer kick started the conference with a moving keynote presentation. She put out a call to action for attendees with “If not us, who? If not now, when?”. Other presenters at the event included Mike Casey, a New Zealand cherry farmer who tackled his farm’s energy need head on converting all onfarm machinery and vehicles to electric. Jo Sheppard, CEO of Queensland Farmers’ Federation chaired a panel discussion how renewables can best coexist with farming and the need for more information on decommissioning.

As part of the conference, Acciona Energia’s hosted a booked-out tour of its MacIntyre Wind Farm. Over 50 tour participants learnt about how the wind farm was constructed, the benefits it has brought to the local community, as well as getting up close with a fully completed tower. The scale of the project, the turbines and camp facilities were a highlight with participants noting how impressive the site is.