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Alice Jorgensen
2025 Nuffield Scholar
Helping farms integrate more perennial pastures for greater resilience
NSW agronomist and beef producer Alice Jorgensen is keen to help farmers transition from annual fodder cropping to perennial pasture systems to boost their farm’s resilience to climate variability.
Together with her husband Dane and his family, they run a Brangus seed stock operation with a strong commercial focus.
They farm around 600 hectares for fodder and grain, and have improved subtropical and temperate pastures, as well as extensive native pastures in the lighter hill country.
Alice is also employed off-farm as an agronomist and Group Carbon Lead with McGregor Gourlay at Inverell.
“In my role at McGregor Gourlay, I advise clients on all facets of agronomy in diverse, mixed farming systems. I also lead any carbon and sustainability enquiries and initiatives across the company,” Alice said.
She will undertake a Nuffield Scholarship to study the topic ‘How to integrate more perennial pastures in a beef production system, whilst maintaining or exceeding the productivity of annual fodder crops.’
Alice said the mixed farming systems of the north-west slopes of NSW are well situated to to explore practice change and improve the resilience of the system through the conversion of annual fodder cropping to more permanent perennial pasture.
“Climate variability, declining soil fertility, increased input costs and a desire to address emissions have prompted ourselves and many local producers to consider more options and challenge current practices. The region is somewhat unique in having the environmental conditions of winter and summer growing seasons to allow various annual fodder crops, as well as both subtropical and temperate pastures to fill feed gaps,” she said.
“Annual fodder cropping of predominantly cereals in this area works very well, achieves excellent weight gain and is agronomically a relatively simple system.
“However, the cost of this production system is increasing and soil fertility is declining, so we’re looking towards how perennial pastures can fill this gap. In particular, how to effectively integrate more temperate or winter growing season pastures and maintain or exceed the productivity we currently have.
“With predominantly summer rainfall in this area, subtropical pastures perform well in a system with annual fodder crops, but the temperates are less extensively utilised.
“I will investigate the barriers to change in these systems and how we can embrace more sustainable long-term management as well as increased resilience to drought.”
Alice plans to visit successful examples of perennial pasture systems in mixed farming areas, including in the United States of America, Argentina and South Africa, as well as other regions in Australia.
“The Australian red meat industry has a target to be carbon neutral by 2030,” Alice said.
“My area of study will contribute to empowering our own business, as well as the wider community to have the confidence to adopt more sustainable practices, increasing soil carbon, reducing emissions and improving productivity to ultimately contribute to the net zero 20230 target.”
P: 0418 818 142
E: alice.curkpatrick@gmail.com