STRATEGY
Shaping Tomorrow: Our Roadmap to Success and Sustainability.
DRIVING INNOVATION AND GROWTH: STRATEGIC VISION FOR THE FUTURE
Explore the Northern Adelaide Plains Food Cluster's vision and roadmap for growth and innovation. Discover our strategic initiatives focused on sustainability, community engagement, and industry leadership.
Learn how we plan to achieve our goals, support local farmers, and enhance the region's food production capabilities through collaboration and cutting-edge practices.
Click on a goal to learn more about it.
Click on a goal to learn more about it.
Labour availability, skills and training
Employment availability fluctuates seasonally, influenced by immigration policies and the increasing number of people moving closer to the city. Our long-term goal is to create an easily accessible workplace that prioritises training and building you for success, while also welcoming individuals from multicultural backgrounds.
Hiring seasonal workers and utilising mechanisation.
Employing qualified labourers within the industry
Provide advanced training in precision agriculture and hydroponics.
Provide educational workshops to cover crop production techniques and food safety.
Providing on-the-job training and vocational education, alongside opportunities for continuing education.
Ensuring collaboration among stakeholders.
Adequate qualifications, skills, and training are vital for the sector's success, enhancing productivity, product quality, and competitiveness.
Strategies Include:
Completed the Workforce Development Program – designed to explore labour force needs and address barriers to employment.
Our main goals are divided into short-term (0-12 months) and long-term (12-24 months) objectives:
Strengthen opportunities with registered training organisations and universities.
Connecting job agencies and recruiting agencies to industry.
To increase the use of the Virginia Horticulture Centre and other hubs across the Northern Adelaide Plains.
Building a strong regional brand and enhancing our marketing strategy by building up our presence in the community is the end goal. By identifying unique regional qualities and crafting a compelling narrative, we can strengthen our brand identity.
Collaborating with local stakeholders ensures branding consistency across the region. Investing in high-quality packaging and adopting innovative formats will maintain product appeal. Effective retail merchandising highlights product features, while utilising digital channels expands our reach and engagement.
Creating a Regional Brand
Collaboration with local stakeholders ensures consistency in branding.
Investing in quality packaging and adopting innovative formats maintain product appeal.
Effective retail merchandising showcases product features, while digital channels broaden reach and engagement.
Participation in promotional events builds consumer awareness and loyalty
Investing in regional branding and market enhancement positions horticultural stakeholders competitively, fostering growth and success.
Strategies Include:
Our Short and Long Term Goals
Instil a sense of pride and accomplishment among the growers and producers on the Adelaide Plains by showcasing their contributions to the region.
Tell the stories of the Adelaide Plains Food Region.
Initiate collaborations with local media outlets, community organisations and stakeholders to generate interest in the “Grown on the Adelaide Plains” campaign.
Develop a branding kit including logos, taglines and visual elements for the “Grown on the Adelaide Plains” initiative.
Profile growers and producers from the Adelaide Plains Food Region.
The Northern Adelaide Plains (NAP) is an economically important peri-urban food production area, producing over $400 million annually. The region has faced significant disasters, such as the Pinery Fire in 2015, regular flooding of the Gawler River, and the Hailstorm of 2021, which caused severe economic impacts.
Building resilience around natural disasters
Conducting risk assessments, developing emergency plans, diversifying crops and production systems.
Investing in resilient infrastructure and water management helps mitigate impacts, while early warning systems aid in prompt response.
Crop insurance and financial support programs mitigate losses, alongside community engagement and collaboration.
Participation in promotional events builds consumer awareness and loyalty
The primary goal is to build a comprehensive database that supports both immediate disaster relief and long-term resilience.
Strategies Include:
Our Disaster Risk Goals:
Drive the Disaster Risk Project
Building resilience in the community
In the event of a natural disasters the Cluster will continue to coordinate responses and share information to collectively address the issues at hand.
Using mapping software as customer reference management system.
Driving sustainable practices
Identifying waste, water usage, and food safety is crucial. Our goal is to become a more sustainable region by implementing ideas that minimise environmental impact, reduce costs, enhance efficiency, and promote long-term viability.
Waste can be reduced through composting and recycling, fostering circular economies.
Managing input costs involves benchmarking, adopting best practices, and exploring alternative inputs.
Water conservation methods include efficient irrigation, water harvesting, and soil conservation.
Promoting food safety requires implementing GAPs, training workers, and ensuring traceability.
Strategies Include:
Our action plan goals:
Promote DrumMuster Program.
Undertake field assessment on waste steams to explore markets for waste.
Create a recycling pathway flyer for all waste streams
Establish and promote quality standards, ensuring a high level of quality and consistency across the industry.
Drive opportunities for “Waste to Energy” Services Providers.
Establish partnership with SAWater and water related service providers.
Membership packages
Membership fees will generate revenue, stabilise cash flow, and support operational needs, while upselling opportunities will drive sales and growth. Additionally, they will assist in marketing opportunities for small businesses and foster community relationships.
Membership programs serve as valuable tools for data collection, allowing businesses to tailor their products and marketing to better meet customer needs and preferences.
Membership packages aid in brand building and differentiation. Unique benefits associated with membership distinguish the brand from competitors.
Strategies Include:
Our membership process and goals are:
Create a list of products and services to create membership packages including exclusive content or access.
Create user friendly registration process.
Create a customer reference management CRM system for members.
Increase industry and community networking
Networking is essential for accessing resources, fostering collaboration, and identifying opportunities. It supports business growth through joint ventures, partnerships, and diverse support services. Additionally, market intelligence from networking aids informed decision-making. Active participation in events enhances credibility and reputation, while advocacy efforts influence policy decisions and promote industry growth.
Collaboration opportunities arise, fostering joint ventures and partnerships to achieve common goals.
Access to diverse resources and support services aids business growth.
Market intelligence gained through networking helps in making informed decisions and adjustments.
Active participation in networking events enhances credibility and reputation, while advocacy efforts influence policy decisions and promote industry growth.
Strategies Include:
Networking goals:
Provide a platform for industry professionals to share information.
Identify potential partners for joint initiatives and projects.
Build relationships with policy makers, regulators at an interstate and at a national level, and government bodies so it can effectively represent the interests of their members.
To continually promote and educate industry best practise.
Provide opportunities for professional development for all stakeholders by attending conferences, workshops, and events to enhance their skills to stay updated on industry achievements.
Drive quality governance, evaluation and reporting
Creating and implementing policies and procedures is crucial for quality governance, operational direction, evaluation, and reporting within organizations.
Developing policies establishes guidelines for decision-making, behaviour, and performance, promoting consistency and transparency.
Define roles, responsibilities, and procedures, improving efficiency and reducing errors.
Policies set standards for performance evaluation and reporting, enabling data-driven decisions, and enhancing transparency.
Policies ensure adherence to laws, regulations, and ethical standards, effectively managing risks and contributing to long-term sustainability.
Strategies Include:
Our goals for long term efficiency and organisation:
Continually review mission and goals to ensure it aligns with the needs and expectations of the industry and its members.
Foster transparency in the decision-making process by communicating openly with members about key initiatives challenges and successes.
Create a strong governance structure with clear roles and responsibilities.
Recruit board members with diverse skills and experiences encouraging them to actively participate and provide ongoing training. This will include developing and enforcing a code of ethics for the association and its members.
Implement a robust financial management practise by providing regular financial reports to the board members and financial stakeholders.
Employ and retain qualified staff with expertise in association management and provide professional development opportunities for staff.
Stay abreast of legal and regulatory requirements.
Establish key performance indicators to measure its success have. Seek feedback from members and stakeholders to identify areas for announcement to foster a culture of continuous improvement.
Leverage technology for efficient operations including membership management communication an event planning. It will stay current with technological advancements that can enhance the association's operations.
WHERE STRATEGY MEETS PASSION
Read the full strategy.