THE WESTERN Australian Government will relinquish its 50-percent share in the Australian Export Grains Innovation Centre, handing full ownership of the organisation to Grains Australia.

In announcing the decision, WA Minister for Agriculture and Food Jackie Jarvis said the move was made at the request of the Grains Research and Development Corporation.

AEGIC was established in 2012 as a partnership between the WA Government and GRDC.

It quickly became a leading organisation for market insight, innovation and technical solutions for the grains industry, with sites at the WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development precinct in Perth, and at the Bread Research Institute at North Ryde in Sydney.

In April 2023, it was announced that GRDC was handing its stake in AEGIC to Grains Australia, an initiative of GRDC.

In her address at the recent Dowerin Downtown Lunch, Ms Jarvis confirmed the decision and interim plans for the organisation.

“[A]t the start of 2025 a working group made up of DPIRD, AEGIC and Grains Australia recommended the merger of the AEGIC and Grains Australia with ongoing funding from GRDC,” Ms Jarvis said.

“The WA Government will maintain the current funding agreement for AEGIC until June 2026, and I thank GRDC for their commitment to ongoing funding of the AEGIC Functions under the merged Grains Australia banner.

“The WA Government will continue to work alongside Grains Australia in supporting our valuable grains industry.”

Since its founding, the WA Government has invested $40 million into AEGIC initiatives.

In a joint statement, Grains Australia and GRDC said the transition to an “industry-led model” would not only benefit AEGIC but the wider grains industry.

“An industry-led model is positive in ensuring critical value-added, ‘industry good’ functions delivered by Grains Australia and AEGIC are strategically aligned to meet the long-term requirements of Australian grain growers and the broader grains industry,” the statement said.

“An industry-led model is an evolution of the integration of activities and alignment between Grains Australia and AEGIC announced by GRDC and the WA Government in 2023.”

The organisations said the move was expected to come into effect from June 2026.

“However, details – including funding commitments and structure – are still being worked through and will be finalised soon.”

Currently, AEGIC’s leadership includes a board made up of two independent directors – Matt Macfarlane as chair and Karlie Mucjanko alongside Stuart Richardson, the Grains Australia-nominated director, and Terry Hill, the WA DPIRD-nominated director.

Challenging year for AEGIC

The announcement caps off a period of change and uncertainty for AEGIC.

In June last year, it was confirmed that staff had been relocated from the WA DPIRD facility at South Perth due to the detection of concerning levels of asbestos at the site.

The non-technical staff were transferred to leased premises in Subiaco, in Perth’s inner west, with the technical functions related to noodles and Asian products temporarily relocated to the Sustainable Innovative Food Technology (SIFT) facility within the Food Innovation Precinct of WA, east of Mandurah.

Earlier this year, AEGIC announced that construction had commenced on the fit-out of new labs in Welshpool, which will be home to AEGIC’s barley and oats research programs.

The facilities are co-located with Barrett Burston Malting at that company’s Welshpool plant, and will be independently managed by AEGIC.

The organisation also confirmed that its wheat technical teams were setting up new lab space at a location in Cockburn.

There also appears to be some uncertainty around AEGIC’s Sydney location in leased premises.

In AEGIC’s 2023-24 annual report released in November last year, then AEGIC chair Ron Storey wrote that the team was thankful for the assistance from stakeholders following these infrastructure changes.

“Our stakeholders are abundantly aware of the urgent infrastructure needs arising from the unexpected relocation of our WA operations during 2024 and the impending changes in Sydney in 2026,” Mr Storey wrote.

“The prompt action and support of Grains Australia, DPIRD and GRDC in navigating this transition period is highly appreciated by AEGIC.”

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