When GrainCorp built its first grain silo in 1918, the company gained valuable insights into repelling existential threats, including a raging First World War and the escalating challenge posed by vermin.

Today, sustainability is more of an endurance test than a terminal risk, but it still requires a whole-of-company response to preserve existing market access and satisfy entry requirements for others.

GrainCorp’s answer is GrainCorp Next – a multi-year initiative working closely with growers to cut carbon emissions across the entire grain supply chain, from paddock to plate, by embedding sustainable practices.

Canola is the first crop to be trialled, chosen for its low-emissions profile and integration within the company’s operations, from handling to crushing and refining.

GrainCorp General Manager, Sustainability, Michael Anderson, said sustainability credentials in export markets were of critical importance.

“The vast majority of Australia’s canola seed exports go to the European Union to be refined into biofuels,” Mr Anderson said.

“To access that market, the canola needs to be ISCC-certified (a globally recognised sustainability certification system for all feedstocks).

“But certification alone isn’t enough – the biofuel must also achieve a certain emissions intensity that is significantly lower than traditional fossil fuels.

“To do that well obviously requires collaboration across the supply chain, which is why we’re building programs to collaborate with growers, peers and customers.”

The first stage of GrainCorp Next – publicly launched in October 2024 –  is being rolled out to a group of canola growers in Victoria and NSW, with plans to extend the initiative up the east coast of Australia.

Participating growers receive expert guidance on sustainable farming practices, support on emissions reduction strategies and opportunities to collaborate with other growers.

An example of this collaborative, pre-competitive approach between growers and canola supply-chain participants is the involvement of Nutrien Ag Solutions, one of the world’s largest providers of crop inputs and farm services.

GrainCorp has partnered with Nutrien Ag Solutions to support growers in their emissions journey.

Nutrien’s Farm Emissions Profile Service, developed using government and industry-approved models, helps growers understand the source of emissions from their farming operations.

From there, sustainable farming specialists follow up with data-driven strategies to cut total farm emissions, including those from canola production.

GrainCorp Next is also exploring other emission reduction opportunities, including the use of renewable diesel to transport grain and improve energy efficiency at its processing site at Numurkah in regional Victoria.

Mr Anderson said one of the important outcomes of the collaboration process was the development of a sustainability framework which could be applied to other commodities.

“There’s a crop rotation involved, so in any given year a farm might be only 30% canola,” he said.

“The process gives us an opportunity to understand what’s happening at the farm level and then develop a set of sustainability credentials that are applicable not just to canola but also to wheat and barley.”

As the largest grain storage and handling business on the east coast of Australia – and the leading edible oil processor and oilseed crusher in Australia and New Zealand – GrainCorp has a large footprint of assets.

Its main impact on the environment comes from the management of energy, emissions, water and waste.

In the 2024 financial year, the company targeted a 5% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions per tonne across its processing sites, and has now submitted science-based targets for its direct Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, as well as targets for the dominant, indirect Scope 3 emissions in its value chain.

Another key development in 2024 was GrainCorp’s announcement of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Ampol and fund manager IFM Investors to explore the establishment of an integrated renewable fuels industry in Australia.

The initial priority under the MOU is a feasibility study for a renewable fuels facility at Ampol’s Lytton refinery in Brisbane.

GrainCorp would supply homegrown feedstocks to the refinery, and is looking to increase crushing capacity to supply canola oil to the proposed plant.

IFM, for its part, is a major investor in Australian airports, with a strong interest in facilitating low-emissions flights.

While Australian growers produce millions of tonnes of canola each year, the surplus is currently exported for refining into renewable fuels.

Establishment of an Australian renewable fuel refining industry would create a new domestic market for growers, while helping to drive decarbonisation in hard-to-abate parts of the transport sector, including aviation.

It was an attractive enough prospect to secure $250m in funding from the Federal Government’s $1.7bn Future Made in Australia Fund in March 2025.

GrainCorp Managing Director and CEO Robert Spurway said policy support, including supply and demand incentives for the expansion of domestic processing and refining would help to unlock long-term value for Australian growers as key suppliers in the global energy transition.

While projects like GrainCorp Next might seem straightforward in principle, the preparation, groundwork and implementation take significant time and effort.

Mr Anderson said the company spent six months designing the project, followed by a year of engagement with the grower community and industry partners to build trust and alignment.

“Now that we’re more confident of the interventions required and assessment of the outcomes, we’re looking into the development of the crop,” he said.

“This year, we’re funding soil health tests to help participating farms understand the carbon and nitrogen nutrients in the soil, which then helps drive more precise application of fertiliser.”

Another initiative under GrainCorp Next is part-funding for coating the fertiliser with inhibitors, which can significantly reduce nitrogen losses – one of the major sources of emissions at a farm level.

GrainCorp is also exploring how to package sustainability credentials in a way that delivers value for growers and customers.

“Ultimately, what we’re trying to do is position Australian crops – canola, wheat and barley – as the solution to sustainability goals that customers are increasingly setting for themselves,” Mr Anderson said.

“For global companies, meeting a Scope 3 emission reduction target of 30% means looking back through their supply chains and asking: ‘How are we going to achieve this?’

“We want to provide them with Australian grain with verifiable sustainability credentials, showing a 40% (emissions) reduction compared to the global default figure.

“It helps support our customers’ goals, grows our business, and strengthens the whole Australian grains industry as a supplier of choice for those trying to achieve sustainability outcomes.”