A year of milestones for NSW DPI

Technology has brought huge changes to the agricultural industry in Australia over the past century, but throughout it all the mission of the NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) has largely remained the same.

“It's interesting, because you'd expect things to have changed a lot… actually, I find what's more fascinating is what hasn't changed,” said NSW Department of Primary Industries Director General Scott Hansen on Friday, which marked the 130th anniversary of the founding of department.

“What we do hasn't changed really that much. I mean our job is still there to recognise and to make sure our government are well informed and advised about the importance of agriculture and the issues of importance to agriculture. To provide them with advice on that front and to continue to source the very best information and advice and to be able to make that available to farmers.”

Increasing crop yields, improving water efficiencies and pest resistance, reducing soil degradation; these are topics you will find in nearly every Departmental annual report going back the 1890s, Mr Hansen said.

“Today being a hundred thirty years ago that [the Department] was formed sort of snuck up on us. Everyone's just been so busy out there on the ground on drought and fire,” said Mr Hansen, who is also preparing for another milestone for the DPI — their relocation to a new head office on Prince Street.

“We'll probably use the event of moving into a new head office and our new headquarters later in the year as the time to sort of call out more with a bit more fanfare the fact it's a hundred thirty years.

“It's sort of neat the way it's lined up; our hundred and thirtieth year and it will also be the year that we moved to our new DPI head office.”

Mr Hansen said the move into the new DPI Head Office should take place in October.