By Robert Spurway, Managing Director & CEO of GrainCorp
If you’ve flown in or out of Sydney Airport this week, you may have noticed something different: the letters “SAF” on terminal screens and signage, set against golden fields of canola.
It’s a striking reminder that the journey to net zero in aviation may just as easily begin in a paddock as on a runway.
For aviation, SAF is essential – it’s one of the very few ways to decarbonise a mode of transport that cannot be easily electrified. For Australian agriculture, those golden fields signal a major opportunity: to lift productivity, diversify markets, and build new value chains that benefit regional communities.
The timing is significant. Last week, Agriculture Minister Julie Collins MP convened a roundtable on agricultural productivity, feeding into the Treasurer’s Economic Reform Roundtable this week.
One of the major themes of the roundtable was resilience: building supply chains that are reliable, sustainable and globally competitive. What emerged is clear: agriculture has a central role to play in opening new markets, creating sovereign capability and strengthening Australia’s overall economic resilience.
Industry supports reforms that make regulation fit-for-purpose, speed up approvals and reduce barriers to trade; all essential to help agriculture navigate risk while seizing opportunity.
The intersection between agriculture and energy is on display as part of Sydney Airport’s SAF Week.
Aviation cannot electrify at scale just yet; it requires fuel made from reliable, low-carbon feedstocks, and Australian growers are well placed to deliver.
Australia’s grains industry has halved net greenhouse gas emissions since 2005 and reduced emissions intensity by 64 per cent, driven by better soil management and carbon sequestration, all proof that productivity and sustainability can rise together.
Canola is a standout example.
Australia is one of the world’s largest exporters of the oilseed, with around 70 per cent of the crop already going to European biofuels markets under rigorous sustainability certification.
This mighty crop carries a lower carbon footprint, improves soil health, manages weeds, supports livestock through its meal co-product, and even provides grazing opportunities as a dual-purpose crop.
Unlocking a domestic renewable fuels industry would reduce Australia’s reliance on fuel imports, while keeping more of the value-add onshore. It can drive investment in regional infrastructure, develop skills around advanced manufacturing, and strengthen energy security.
Agriculture could move from passenger to driver of the energy transition.
Robert Spurway, CEo
To realise this, we need the right policy environment. Streamlined regulation, faster approvals, harmonised standards and frameworks like the Guarantee of Origin (GO) scheme, one that recognises Australian canola’s genuine emissions advantage, are critical.
Government roundtables are asking where Australia’s productivity gains and resilience improvements will come from over the next decade.
With the right settings, agriculture can supply sustainable feedstocks that decarbonise aviation, attract investment to regional communities, and strengthen Australia’s global competitiveness.
Agriculture has always been about productivity – effectively producing more with less. Renewable fuels are the next chapter in that story, and GrainCorp and Australia’s high-quality canola are ready to lead it.
This article was first published in The Land on 23 August, 2025.
