Industry Programs

Best Practice Management Program (Punjabi Growers in Riverland SA)

This 10-week program supported Sikh and Punjabi growers in the Riverland region by helping them improve their financial position and business decision-making skills. The program provided guidance on business planning, motivation, and long-term resilience while fostering self-esteem and confidence in navigating financial challenges.

Skills Training for Farmers

Following the RBS-commissioned report “Characteristics of Profitable South Australian Farming Businesses (2006-2010),” this initiative delivered workshops to help farmers build critical business management skills. The sessions explored industry challenges, financial sustainability, and skill development approaches to ensure long-term resilience.

Farm Business Strategic Review

This program provided strategic briefing sessions to assist family farming businesses in developing tailored Strategic Action Plans. Delivered across multiple agricultural sectors, including dairy, pork, grains, and livestock, the initiative helped farmers assess their business position, set long-term goals, and create structured pathways toward financial sustainability.

Farm Business Advisory Service

Designed to support farmers in strengthening their enterprises, this service offered one-on-one financial guidance. RBS business analysts worked closely with farmers to assess business health, explore succession and transition planning, align financial goals with business aspirations, and implement structured improvement strategies.

Business Skills Workshop (Virginia Region Horticulturalists)

In response to the Gawler River flood event, RBS identified a need for financial literacy training for Cambodian and Vietnamese horticulturalists in the Virginia region. With funding from the Department of Industry and Skills, workshops were developed and delivered in Khmer and Vietnamese, ensuring accessibility for non-English-speaking participants. This program demonstrated the effectiveness of culturally tailored business training.

Managing Your Farm Business

This initiative provided farming families with business planning tools, mentoring, and referrals to specialist business service providers. Participants received targeted support to strengthen financial management practices and improve the long-term viability of their operations.

SA Wine and Grape Growing Industry Scoping Project

RBS employed a business support specialist to assist wine grape growers in adapting to industry challenges. The project developed a strategic roadmap for industry-wide restructuring and resulted in a proposal for a pilot adjustment project in a cool-climate wine-growing region.

SA Fish Industry Scoping Project

In response to declining fishery values, increasing operational costs, and concerns about marine park declarations, RBS worked closely with the South Australian fishing industry. A business support specialist was employed to assess the potential need for financial counselling and to explore solutions for affected fishers.

NT Fish Industry Scoping Project

Working with the NT Seafood Council and Primary Industries and Resources NT, RBS conducted an industry survey to determine the financial needs of the NT fishing industry. The findings highlighted several struggling fisheries and the growing concern among industry participants about the impact of impending marine park declarations.

SA Murray Darling Basin NRM – Farm Boards Pilot

This project provided financial management and governance training for farming families in the SA Murray Darling Basin. Participants learned practical business strategies to improve their long-term financial resilience and operational decision-making.

Succession Planning Assistance

With funding from the Australian Government, RBS launched a promotional campaign to increase awareness and engagement with succession planning. The initiative included promotional materials, a toolkit, workshops, and a national communications strategy. As a result, engagement with succession planning services increased by 485% in just one year.

Strategic, Succession and Family Workshops

This $100,000 project facilitated 23 workshops across South Australia, providing valuable insights on topics including cost of production, strategic planning, and business succession. Delivered in partnership with expert facilitators, the program helped farming families develop strategies for business growth and continuity.

Plan to Profit – Farm Management Tools Project

Funded by the state government, this initiative aimed to improve business planning capabilities within the agribusiness sector. RBS collaborated with Applied Economic Solutions to develop Plan to Profit software, enabling farmers to model financial scenarios over a five-year period to make more informed decisions.

Drought Response (2006-2010)

During this period of severe drought, RBS expanded its team of rural financial counsellors and facilitated drought-related support services. This included Drought Information Sessions and Exceptional Circumstances Interest Rate Subsidy Application Centres, providing vital financial guidance to struggling farm businesses.

Branched Broomrape Eradication Program

This program provided financial counselling and business planning support to farm businesses affected by government eradication measures within exclusion zones. RBS worked closely with impacted farmers to manage financial pressures and explore business sustainability strategies.

Sampson Flat Bushfire Case Management

Following the Sampson Flat Bushfire, RBS partnered with the South Australian Government to assist affected business owners in assessing losses, developing business recovery plans, exploring diversification opportunities, and accessing new markets. This initiative played a critical role in helping fire-affected communities rebuild.

Characteristics of Profitable Farms (2006–2010) Project

On behalf of the Government of South Australia, RBS conducted research into 33 profitable farm businesses that successfully navigated the Millennium Drought. The findings were published in a series of case studies and used to inform policy discussions on financial resilience within the farming sector.

Rural Services Survey (University of Adelaide Partnership)

RBS participated in a University of Adelaide PhD research project examining whether family-owned farms face disadvantages in accessing finance compared to corporate agribusinesses. The study, funded by the Australian Research Council, surveyed 54 RBS clients to assess financial barriers in the industry.

The Survival of Australia’s Family-Owned Farms: Capital Raising and Credit Access

This University of Adelaide research project explored the challenges family-owned farms face in securing credit and raising capital. The findings provided valuable insights into financial access disparities between corporate and family-run agricultural businesses.