V.ISC.2118 - Australian AgriFood Data Exchange Phase 2 and 3 – Business Case

Summary

Currently, the data systems used in Australia’s agrifood sector are recognised as disparate, siloed and proprietary. A lack of a central platform poses a range of challenges to the sector, resulting in market failures in both information and coordination.

The AAFDX project presents an opportunity to form the foundational digital infrastructure for the Australian agrifood industry to enhance industry collaboration, enable a national utility and service for biosecurity and compliance, and allow Australia to keep pace with other leading international agrifood industries.

The development of a national data exchange platform is well placed to accelerate agrifood tech innovation and increase agrifood enterprise financial outcomes, in the context of policy and strategic alignment supported by the State and Commonwealth Governments, and industry.

Objectives

The AAFDX project seeks to define and articulate the business case for investment in an industry owned data exchange. The AAFDX project was an ambitious, complex, multi-year, multi-phased program requiring significant investment to bring the vision to life and build confidence for supporters. The project was divided into three phases:

(1) – project establishment and use cases

(2) – market scan and sourcing strategy, request for information process, experiments

(3) expression of interest, detailed use case requirements, data governance, operating model, and business case.

Key findings

The business case outlines options to deliver a data exchange and prioritised applications as well as inform key decisions such as the legal entity structure, commercial objectives, and risk adjusted funding quantum required to progress the project to the delivery phase.

The following summarises the key points from the business case:

• The project option which best satisfies the project objectives for the AAFDX comprises of core enabling data exchange infrastructure, four prioritised applications, and comprehensive operating model. 

• There is a low-cost operating model that leverages in-kind contributions that can be built on to deliver the full vision for the project. 

• The preferred project option will conservatively generate a positive net benefit in the first five years (NPV $FY23) to the Australian agrifood supply chain and increasing net benefit over 15 years.

• The non-risk adjusted net capital and operating costs of the preferred project option have been included for the first 5 years of operations until profitable. 

• The preferred legal entity structure is a Not-for-Profit company limited by guarantee.  

Benefits to industry

By enabling agrifood industry data owners to direct and control what data they would like to share and with whom, the AAFDX could support users in unlocking the value from their data, enabling fluid collaboration up and down the supply chain.

MLA action

MLA has played the lead role in coordinating the co-investment funds and IP management for the project supporters of the AAFDX.

Future research

It is recommended that the project moves into the fund-raising phase. Prospective funders of the project may have an interest in conducting further analysis prior to progressing the project to the delivery phase, especially regarding the development of data standards and how to best engage technology partners in the AAFDX platform.