NSW Agriculture Industries Innovation and Growth Program — Agtech, Export and Sustainability in Regional NSW
NSW Agriculture Industries Innovation and Growth Program — Agtech, Export and Sustainability in Regional NSW
For businesses operating in regional NSW's agricultural supply chain — farmers, food processors, agtech developers, rural service businesses — the Agriculture Industries Innovation and Growth Program is one of the more substantial and targeted programs currently active. Here's what it is, who it suits, and what strong applications look like.
What the program is
Administered by the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, the Agriculture Industries Innovation and Growth Program is a $25 million investment from the Regional Development Trust. It's designed to accelerate the uptake of innovative technology and equipment in regional NSW, with a focus on three specific outcomes: increasing access to export opportunities, improving productivity and resilience in supply chains, and achieving lower emissions in the agricultural sector.
Projects must be located in one of the 95 regional NSW Local Government Areas, the Unincorporated Far West region, or on Lord Howe Island. Metropolitan-based businesses aren't eligible, though businesses based regionally with supply chain activity in regional NSW can apply.
What it funds
The program supports the purchase of innovative equipment and agtech that lowers emissions, improves supply chain efficiency, supports access to export markets, or improves competitiveness in ways that leverage regional NSW strengths. Capital expenditure on eligible equipment, technology, and IP required to undertake the project can be funded. So can the employment of staff or service providers to deliver the project.
What it doesn't fund includes mobile equipment like vehicles, boats, and trailers (with limited exceptions for equipment essential to the project), general operating costs, and costs that don't meet the program's compliance and eligibility requirements.
Eligibility checks
Eligible applicants include companies, partnerships, trusts, co-operatives, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporations with an active ABN. The business must demonstrate financial viability by providing two years of financial statements, and must hold public liability insurance of at least $20 million per occurrence (or commit to obtaining it prior to executing a funding deed). Government agencies and statutory authorities are explicitly excluded.
The program requires a co-contribution from the applicant — the specific amount depends on the project and is set in the program guidelines. Applicants should review the current guidelines directly to understand the co-funding expectations for their project type.
Founder tips
Tie the project explicitly to one of the three program outcomes — export access, supply chain productivity, or emissions reduction. Generic productivity improvements that don't map cleanly to these objectives are harder to score well. The strongest applications show a direct, specific pathway from the funded activity to one of those outcomes.
The 'innovative technology' bar matters. The program specifically supports technologies and approaches that go beyond business-as-usual. An upgrade to existing equipment along known lines is weaker than adoption of an approach that represents a genuine step change for the operation.
Assessment outcomes were anticipated from 29 May 2026 for the current round. For any future round, check the program page directly on nsw.gov.au for updated timelines and guidelines — and contact regionaldevelopmenttrust@dpird.nsw.gov.au with pre-application questions. They're the right people to ask.
Where KP Retail fits in
Regional and agricultural grant programs sit slightly differently to metropolitan innovation grants in how they're framed and assessed. KP Retail has worked with agtech businesses, food producers, and primary industries businesses on applications that bridge technical innovation and commercial agriculture — a combination that not every grants advisor is comfortable in.
We help regional businesses map their project to the program's specific objectives, build the financial documentation package, and frame co-contribution in ways that reflect the financial reality of agricultural enterprises rather than tech startup norms.
The Agriculture Industries Innovation and Growth Program is one of the better-targeted regional grants in NSW for businesses doing genuinely innovative things in the agricultural supply chain. If your business operates in regional NSW and you want to understand whether you fit, KP Retail is happy to help you make that call. Get in touch.
Related reading: NSW Agriculture Industries Innovation sits within a broader state and federal grant ecosystem for agribusiness and primary industries. See our overview of state-based business programs for context, and our guide to using the NSW Grants Finder to discover related programs. Our guide to co-contribution and matched funding explains the cash requirements you may face. KP Retail works with agtech and regional NSW businesses on grant applications.
