Northern Territory Horticultural Association
Project Profile
| Nominee | Northern Territory Horticultural Association |
| State | Northern Territory |
| Award Ceremony | 2010 National Landcare Awards |
| Category | Innovation in Sustainable Farm Practices |
Issues
The rapid expansion of ‘new farmers’ (first generation or inexperienced horticulturalists) in the Northern Territory has created a need for best practice sustainable agricultural information relevant to the Territory. Producers recognise that a proactive approach to NRM through targeted sustainable practices programs is pivotal to the success of food production in the North.
The ‘Best Practice for Sustainable Land Use in the NT’ project was funded in 2005 through the National Landcare Program (NLP) as a joint project between the NTHA and the NTAgA.
Project Detail
The Northern Territory Horticultural Association (NTHA) has been nominated for a National Landcare Award for developing a system with local primary producers to implement sustainable practices on-farm.
The rapid expansion of ‘new farmers’ (first generation or inexperienced horticulturalists) in the Northern Territory has created a need for best practice sustainable agricultural information relevant to the Territory. Producers recognise that a proactive approach to NRM through targeted sustainable practices programs is pivotal to the success of food production in the North.
In 2004, growers and representatives from the Northern Territory Horticultural (NTHA) and Agricultural (NTAgA) Associations along with Department of Primary Industries (DPI), Natural Resources, Environment and The Arts (NRETA) and Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) delegates developed a project aimed at assisting Territory primary producers to manage and sustain their natural resources.
The ‘Best Practice for Sustainable Land Use in the NT’ project was funded in 2005 through the National Landcare Program (NLP) as a joint project between the NTHA and the NTAgA.
The project developed a program that could be adopted by all land users regardless of their developmental / production stage, financial capacity or culture, ensuring that everyone has access to current ‘best practice’ tools to be able to implement sustainable practices.
The program included a toolkit that gave a whole of property approach to NRM. As ‘new farmers’ many of the NRM concepts were new and in a lot of cases, no ‘assumed knowledge’ about resource management was applicable.
The toolkit encouraged producers to undertake self-assessment at their own pace providing a pathway to accredited environmental management systems (EMS). The process of self- assessment also ensured that these ‘new farmers’ start their careers as proactive rather than reactive land managers.
The Northern Territory Horticultural Association is one of 88 finalists in the National Landcare Awards to be announced in Canberra on 24 June 2010. Commencing in 1991, the Awards celebrate the achievements of individuals and groups that make a valuable contribution to the land and coast where they live and work.
Photography
Northern Territory Horticultural Association
