Summary

This impact evaluation summarises the outcomes of CRCNA project: A.2.1819004 – Potential for Broadacre cropping in the NT.

The project assessed the Northern Territory’s potential for broadacre cropping, focusing on how land, water, soil and climate conditions could support commercially viable cotton and grain production. Delivered from 2019 to 2022, the project combined field trials, historical datasets and APSIM modelling to identify viable cropping opportunities while clarifying the risks associated with highly variable northern production conditions.

The project created the first integrated evidence base for NT broadacre cropping, generating region-specific agronomic insights, long-term production risk analysis and practical decision-support tools including CropARM integration and soil-climate databases. This gave growers, investors and policymakers stronger information for planning future cropping development and infrastructure investment.

A major outcome was increased industry confidence in cotton as a viable NT enterprise, helping support establishment of the Katherine cotton gin, which created more than 30 jobs in its first season and eliminated the need to transport cotton to Queensland for processing. The project achieved a 5.8x return on CRCNA investment, with longer-term impacts expected through expanded cropping, private infrastructure investment and more diversified agricultural supply chains across the Territory.