Optimising agronomy of irrigated crops to enhance profit per megalitre of water

The work will synthesise evidence from previous GRDC irrigated agriculture investments and assess priority opportunities to improve profitability from irrigated cropping systems, with a focus on maximising profit per megalitre of irrigation water rather than yield or water-use efficiency alone. The analysis must consider the agronomic and economic drivers that influence irrigated crop decisions, including water availability, water price, input costs, seasonal conditions, crop potential, crop end use, rotations, and whole-farm water allocation. It must also assess how irrigation delivery systems and practices, including surface or furrow and pressurised sprinkler systems, interact with soil physical constraints and crop management factors to influence crop performance, input efficiency and profit per megalitre. For this procurement, irrigated crops primarily refers to grain crops within GRDC’s remit. The analysis should also consider how these crops compete with, complement or interact with other irrigated enterprises, including rice, cotton, forages and mixed farming systems, where relevant to whole-farm water allocation and opportunity costs. The successful tenderer will be required to review existing irrigation and crop decision-support tools, identify whether they are meeting grower needs, and assess whether practical economic tools or decision frameworks are required to support more confident and timely irrigation research investment decisions across winter and summer cropping scenarios. The final output will be a clear, evidence-based report that identifies priority research gaps, high-leverage agronomic opportunities, and practical recommendations to guide future GRDC investment in irrigated agronomy at national and regional scales.