Food & Fibre Gippsland explores AI opportunities for regional agribusiness
Food & Fibre Gippsland representatives Rod Hayes and Merrin Curnow attended the recent REG Committee Meeting & ‘AI in Ag Masterclass’ in San Remo, gaining first-hand insight into how artificial intelligence can be used as a practical tool to support Gippsland’s farming and agribusiness sectors.
Delivered by Ben Finkel from the Australian Regional AI Network, the masterclass showcased real-world applications of AI for agriculture, including rapid contract review, adviser visit summaries, market research, sensor and irrigation monitoring, and advanced financial and production analysis.
Food & Fibre Gippsland sees strong potential for AI to enhance research, improve business analysis and decision-making, and unlock new value from existing farm and supply chain data. Tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude can help producers and agribusinesses turn complex documents, spreadsheets and sensor feeds into clear insights, scenarios and dashboards in a fraction of the time.
Rod Hayes said “Food & Fibre Gippsland will continue to explore opportunities to help local agribusinesses safely adopt AI, building capability across the region while maintaining strong data governance and privacy. This aligns with Food & Fibre Gippsland’s commitment to supporting innovation, productivity and resilience across the Gippsland food and fibre sector”.
It’s an extra pair of hands
A compelling and enjoyable presentation, Ben Finkel showed farmers that AI isn’t about robots or replacing jobs—it’s simply a smart tool that can save time and make better decisions on‑farm. His message was clear: treat AI like a fast, helpful farmhand who still needs your guidance. Start small by using it to summarise contracts, tidy up adviser notes, or turn your spreadsheets into clear dashboards.
Make a start and just keep going
Keep the conversation going—AI works best when you feed it context about your farm, your paddocks, your enterprise. Ben demonstrated how AI can flag unusual contract terms, pull key actions out of farm‑visit transcripts, spot trends in livestock performance, or even monitor irrigation and feeding systems.
Data security was front and centre too: use paid accounts, choose where your data lives, and always double-check what AI produces. For farmers just getting started, Ben’s advice was simple: begin with the information you already have, experiment a little each week, and let AI take care of the admin so you can get back to the work that really matters.
Interested in future AI in Ag sessions or connecting to support? Contact Food & Fibre Gippsland email info@foodandfibregippsland.com.au to register your interest.
