In March 2025 a group of Western Australian vegetable growers, based in the south west of the state began work on developing a low cost, do it yourself, open source weed detection and management tool.

Once the growers decided on what they wanted to develop, they began looking for support, and the grower-led OWL Project in Manjimup was born.

This initiative is being driven by the Warren Cauliflower Group, supported by vegetables WA and seed funding through the VegNET innovation program.

VegNET 3.0, project code VG21000, is the national extension program for the vegetable and onion industry, coordinated by AUSVEG, and funded by Hort Innovation, using vegetable and onion levy funds, as well as contributions from the Australian Government.

The Chairman of the Warren Cauliflower Group Jake Ryan and the groups Executive Officer Jen Riseley spoke to the Vegalogue Podcast.

If you want to find out more about the OWL, or Open Weed Locator, you can find it here.

On the 26th February 2026 the Warren Cauliflower Group, supported by VegNET and alongside Vegetables WA will hold a live demonstration of the project on the Ryans Farm at Manjimup. You can find out more and register to attend here.

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries, where we examine the pressing issues and latest developments in our sector.

Thanks for listening! You can find out more about AUSVEG and the Australian vegetable industry at ausveg.com.au. Subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, or Tik Tok.

Yumeng Chen is one of the 2026 Nuffield Scholars who has been sponsored by Hort Innovation.

Her project will explore how virtual modelling can optimise production systems and decision-making in vegetable growing. As she describes it the project will look at ways of using a virtual model of part of a farm, or part of an operation’s supply chain, combined with historical sales and production data, to forecast what will be needed in the year ahead.

Yumeng is a Senior Account Manager with Fragapane Farms, which grows lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, celery and other green vegetable crops near Werribee in Victoria.

She’s responsible for the  domestic retailers and the export markets, but is also involved in projects related to supply planning, demand forecasting and data analytics. 

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries, where we examine the pressing issues and latest developments in our sector.

Thanks for listening! You can find out more about AUSVEG and the Australian vegetable industry at ausveg.com.au. Subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, or Tik Tok.

From lifting vegetable consumption to grower confidence, this episode reflects on a defining 12 months for AUSVEG advocacy. AUSVEG Chair Bill Bulmer unpacks key advocacy initiatives, sentiment survey insights, and the evidence shaping change in 2026.

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries. 

Join us for insights from growers, industry leaders, and researchers on the latest challenges and opportunities in Australian horticulture. 

Learn more at ausveg.com.au and follow us on social media.

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries, where we examine the pressing issues and latest developments in our sector.

Thanks for listening! You can find out more about AUSVEG and the Australian vegetable industry at ausveg.com.au. Subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, or Tik Tok.

Bill Winter unpacks the real dynamics behind farm succession - communication, planning, fairness and fear - and how treating succession as a gradual transition can strengthen families and safeguard the business for the next generation.

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries, where we examine the pressing issues and latest developments in our sector.

Thanks for listening! You can find out more about AUSVEG and the Australian vegetable industry at ausveg.com.au. Subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, or Tik Tok.

In September onion growers from across Australia spent two very busy weeks in Europe as part of the vegetable and onion study tour program, Project VG23002 funded by Hort Innovation.

Over that fortnight the group visited farming, packaging and processing operations in the United Kingdom and The Netherlands.

Two of the tour group were Lynette and Glenroy Logan who are growers based in Queensland’s Lockyer Valley. 

The industry study tours provide opportunities for Australian vegetable and onion growers and supply chain businesses to increase their awareness and knowledge of the research and innovations in the global horticulture industry through the delivery of tours to strategic vegetable and onion growing regions, conferences, facilities, and innovation centres around the globe.

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries, where we examine the pressing issues and latest developments in our sector.

Thanks for listening! You can find out more about AUSVEG and the Australian vegetable industry at ausveg.com.au. Subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, or Tik Tok.

Meet the next generation driving Australian horticulture forward. Erin Cranwell, Rashan Walia, and Dylan Bellchambers share their journeys, insights, and hopes for the industry — from workforce and compliance to stronger grower and consumer connections.

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries, where we examine the pressing issues and latest developments in our sector.

Thanks for listening! You can find out more about AUSVEG and the Australian vegetable industry at ausveg.com.au. Subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, or Tik Tok.

In late August a group of Australian vegetable growers spent a week in New Zealand as part of the vegetable and onion study tour program, funded by Hort Innovation.

‘These industry study tours provide opportunities for Australian vegetable and onion growers and supply chain businesses to increase their awareness and knowledge of the research and innovations in the global horticulture industry through the delivery of tours to strategic vegetable and onion growing regions, conferences, facilities, and innovation centres around the globe.

Over five days the group visited farming operations across the country’s North Island, retail operations, the biosecurity operations at Wellington’s international airport and were delegates at the annual New Zealand horticulture conference.

The tour group included Warrick Purden, the General Manager of Farm Operations with Hussey and Co in Victoria’s Gippsland, and Jimmy Fox and Calvin Parker, who are from near Manjimup in Western Australia, and both part of their family’s farming operations, primarily growing potatoes, but also other vegetable crops.

Campbell Cooney spoke with them about what they learnt on the tour and why they wanted to be part of it. 

VG23002 is funded by Hort Innovation using the vegetable and onion research and development levies and contributions from the Australian Government.

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries, where we examine the pressing issues and latest developments in our sector.

Thanks for listening! You can find out more about AUSVEG and the Australian vegetable industry at ausveg.com.au. Subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, or Tik Tok.

Compliance and regulation costs vegetable growers over $213M a year — but solutions are urgently needed. This episode explores key reforms to cut duplication, streamline processes, and give growers time back to their real jobs, rather than filling out endless forms.

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries.

Join us for insights from growers, industry leaders, and researchers on the latest challenges and opportunities in Australian horticulture.

Learn more at ausveg.com.au and follow us on social media.

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries, where we examine the pressing issues and latest developments in our sector.

Thanks for listening! You can find out more about AUSVEG and the Australian vegetable industry at ausveg.com.au. Subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, or Tik Tok.

Level Up Hort, the business improvement and benchmarking program funded by Hort Innovation, released its 2024 season benchmarks in June. 

The project is led by Planfarm and supported by RMCG, and in its second seasonal report boasted a rise in grower involvement, as vegetable and onion growers around Australia considered the benefits of business benchmarking. 

One of those is Burdekin vegetable and melon grower Chris Lyne from Mountainview Fresh Farms. Chris is one of the participants in the Level Up Hort project, working with Planfarm Horticultural Business Consultant Maria Fathollahi. 

We had a chat with Chris and Maria about the value the process has had for the grower’s business.

This project is funded by Hort Innovation using the vegetable and onion industry research and development levies and contributions from the Australian Government, under project code MT22009 

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries, where we examine the pressing issues and latest developments in our sector.

Thanks for listening! You can find out more about AUSVEG and the Australian vegetable industry at ausveg.com.au. Subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, or Tik Tok.

How can school lunches shape kids’ eating for life? Julie Dunbabin shares lessons from global programs and how Tasmania’s pilot is boosting attendance, food literacy, and children’s appetite for vegetables.

Vegalogue is the podcast from AUSVEG, the peak body for Australia’s vegetable, potato, and onion industries, where we examine the pressing issues and latest developments in our sector.

Thanks for listening! You can find out more about AUSVEG and the Australian vegetable industry at ausveg.com.au. Subscribe to our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, or Tik Tok.