What’s On The Horizon For Agribusiness: Elections & Carbon Emissions – Their Fates Are Tied

In the wash-up of the recent federal election, the Bentleys Queensland Agri and Carbon Accounting teams share their perspectives on the political, regulatory, financial and practical implications for agribusiness as we enter into a new era of Labor government dominance in parliament (with a left-leaning Senate), as well as the new regime for emissions reporting and disclosure requirements for business in Australia.

Election Outcome – A Clean Energy and Environmental Mandate

Probably from most observers’ perspective, it could be said that this was a result that no one was predicting. A huge majority for Labor, a crushing defeat for the Coalition and ultimately their demise. During the election campaign there was much focus on net zero targets and the big parties’ election policies – renewables vs nuclear.

With this result, one thing became clear – the government now has a strong mandate to push through with its renewables and environment policy agenda, with Australia set to continue its pathway to toward its target of 43% emissions reductions by 2030 in an effort to achieve Australia’s net-zero emissions target by 2050.

Businesses will have a role to play in Australia achieving these targets, including agribusinesses.

Carbon – Why Does It Matter to Agribusiness?

In January 2025, mandatory climate reporting legislation commenced. This requires large businesses to submit climate-related financial disclosures to ASIC, including their carbon (greenhouse gas) emissions and risks and opportunities assessments. This shift is already having a ripple effect across supply chains, with large companies like supermarkets engaging with suppliers to understand their carbon emissions, which must be reported alongside their own as part of their mandatory ASIC disclosures.

Although most smaller agribusinesses will not have any legal requirement to measure or report their emissions, if they are part of a supply chain that includes a large business that is a mandatory reporter (e.g. food processor, supermarket etc.) they will likely be asked for their carbon emissions data in the near future by these larger businesses if they are mandatory reporters.

Are Carbon Emissions and Carbon Farming the Same Thing?

No.They can often come up in the same conversation in agriculture, but it is very important to recognise that they are two topics in their own right. Carbon emissions are the release of greenhouse gas emissions in the course of businesses conducting their activities and carbon accounting is the process of quantifying these emissions. Carbon farming is where a project is established to enable the sequestration (absorption) of carbon. These projects are typically established on-farm in the agriculture industry in the right circumstances. It is important to understand the carbon emissions from an agribusiness first, prior to making decisions on carbon farming projects.

So, What Steps Should I Consider Taking for My Business?

1. One of the first practical steps to take is to understand the carbon emissions from your business activities. You can begin by measuring your emissions to establish a baseline, then track them going forward. This is otherwise known as your Carbon Footprint. You can measure your carbon emissions yourself — or engage a carbon accountant, such as Bentleys — to measure your emissions for you.
2. Having completed your own Carbon Footprint will likely be a significant help to your business in circumstances where larger business partners request emissions data from their supply chain partners for their own mandatory reporting purposes.
3. There will be an expectation that carbon emissions from businesses are reducing over time for Australia to meet its Net-Zero emissions targets by 2050. Agribusinesses that are measuring their carbon emissions will be able to track them over time and take action to reduce them. So, agribusinesses will likely need to plan for change to reduce their emissions. It’s important to note that these changes do not necessarily need to be complex or expensive — some simple and practical operational changes can deliver emissions reductions.

When Should I Start Considering Taking Action?

Now. With Australian climate reporting legislation now in force and increasing expectations across supply chains for carbon emissions data disclosure, now is the time for agribusinesses to take their first practical steps.

Where Can I Find Out More?

Bentleys Carbon Conversations for Agribusiness Seminars

Bentleys’ Agri and Carbon Accounting teams are running a series of seminars for agribusiness across Queensland this year. They are focused on helping agribusinesses cut through the noise and provide guidance on the practical steps they can consider taking to measure and reduce their emissions, and the practical implications from both operational and financial perspectives.

Join us at one of our upcoming Carbon Conversations for Agribusiness Seminars:

• Toowoomba – Thursday, 29 May – Register here (RSVP by 26 May)
• Emerald – Thursday, 5 June – Register here (RSVP by 2 June).

Australian AGinvestment & Sustainability Summit

Bentleys are again this year, proud to be running the Australian AGinvestment and Sustainability Summit in Brisbane on Friday, 29 August. With over 400 attendees in 2024, it is the largest event in Australia that brings together the nation’s leaders in agriculture production, investment and sustainability. The Summit provides a platform to connect and share insights on attracting investment into agriculture and the innovative sustainability practices being implemented by industry operators and investors — that are good for the environment, good for people and good for business.

Visit the Summit’s website for more details – www.agissummit.com.au

Getting Up to Speed with Carbon Emissions for Your Agribusiness

Bentleys have been working with the rural industry for over 76 years and can help you quickly get up to speed on carbon. We have tailored our Carbon Accounting services specifically for the agriculture industry to enable you to measure your carbon emissions efficiently and accurately to the Australian Carbon Accounting Standards — ensuring you can meet the requests from your supply chain partners for your emissions data. We can also help with practical advice on options to consider for reducing your emissions.

Contact our Carbon Accounting and Advisory team for a chat and to answer your questions on how to get started:

Brendan Goulding, Director
E [email protected]
D 07 3222 9633

Rohan Dunsdon, Partner
E [email protected]
D 07 3222 9726

Ben Cameron, Managing Partner
E [email protected]
D 07 3222 9600

Disclaimer: This information is general in nature and should not be relied on as advice. It does not take into account the objectives, financial situation or needs of any particular person. You need to consider your financial situation and needs and seek professional advice before making any decisions based on this information.