Championing expanded perspectives for horticultural research

As a newly minted agricultural science graduate in the late 1970s, Ms Irene Kernot began her career with a series of extension roles, handing down knowledge from ‘technical’ researchers to farmers at the end of research projects.

Today, she said, knowledge is as likely to come from farmers themselves, as participants in research, or from social scientists working alongside agricultural researchers to ensure that social and cultural constraints to systems are also considered.

Extension is no longer an afterthought, said Irene. It is (mostly) a key part of the design of a research project.

And, she said, the impacts of production on the environment and communities are essential considerations, from the need to reduce chemical use to ensuring local people have access to fresh produce.

These are among the major changes that have evolved over her long career in agricultural research, many of which Irene has championed as she moved from extension and research into project management roles.

Irene is retiring at the end of August, stepping down from her role as Research Program Manager, Horticulture at ACIAR which she took up in 2018, after a career spanning more than 40 years.

Early inspiration

It was a love of gardening and time spent outdoors as a child that initially led Irene to an agricultural science degree at the University of Adelaide. She admits that tales of her family’s farming heritage in Latvia, before they emigrated to Australia in the 1950s, may also have played a part. ‘Farming must have been in my DNA in some way,’ she said.

ACIAR Research Program Manager, Horticulture, Ms Irene Kernot, is retiring following a 40-year career in horticulture and research for development.

Growing up in Adelaide, South Australia, Irene had planned to work in the temperate cropping and vegetable farm systems after graduating in 1977. But influenced by a work placement in Papua New Guinea during her studies, and a lack of local research jobs, she moved north to tackle tropical agriculture, which was to become the focus of work throughout her career.

She joined the Northern Territory Department of Agriculture as a research technician and research officer, working with mungbean, soybean and corn crops before taking a break to raise her 2 daughters.

The family moved to Queensland and Ms Kernot completed a postgraduate degree in adult education, before taking an extension role with what is now the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (QDAF) in 1992.

Transition to new crops

One of her first jobs there was to help farmers in the Atherton Tablelands region to transition from tobacco growing to new crops, as changing government policy made tobacco increasingly unviable. Mango, avocado, citrus and banana were the main crops identified as possible alternatives.

‘The whole region had to find something different to do. It was actually quite exciting, helping growers who had no idea about these new crops to take on new challenges, making decisions that would change their lives and lifestyles,’ said Irene.

Northern Queensland, including the Atherton Tablelands, has since emerged as one of the leading avocado production areas in Australia.

Irene with farming families in Papua New Guinea during a project site visit.

Irene visits a farmers' market in PNG with fellow researchers.

Irene with farming families in Papua New Guinea during a project site visit.

Irene meeting farmers in Papua New Guinea.

Irene speaking at the 2021 Crawford Conference.

Supply chain collaboration

In another avocado-related project, she helped to bring growers, supply chain and retail partners together to support the introduction of the Shepard avocado variety to supplement the popular Hass avocado to help grow the market with a year-round supply.

‘It was the first project where I worked all the way along the supply chain. It was a fabulous project to be working on in the 1990s because it challenged traditional notions of agricultural research, which were very much focused pre-farm gate,’ explained Irene.

It also challenged the conventional view of producers and supply chain participants as competitors, working instead towards a cooperative approach. Irene said this supply chain approach was ‘pretty new’ at the time but has since become integral to many projects she has been involved with.

Connecting smallholder farmers to markets has been particularly important in many of the ACIAR-supported projects she has overseen across the Indo-Pacific region over the past 6 years.

It's not good enough to just grow the crops. If people aren't eating them, or are unable to access them, then you’re missing another important step and opportunity.

Ms Irene Kernot

At QDAF, Irene moved from extension into project management, eventually overseeing the horticulture and forestry science research group. This included the tropical fruit, post-harvest, market access and banana research teams, with 60 researchers at centres across the state.

Networks for knowledge exchange

Through both QDAF and ACIAR, Irene said she was proudest of the networks she has helped to build between researchers and growers, in Australia and overseas. These have supported ongoing relationships even while having hard conversations, along with the valuable exchange of knowledge and experience.

The threat of Fusarium wilt to the Australian and international banana sector is a case in point.

‘Despite tension between Australian and Filipino banana growers over import application, we managed to convince the Australian industry to support Filipino growers through research,’ explained Irene.

The relationships and experience Australia gained were hugely helpful in managing later outbreaks of Fusarium here.

There is also real value for Australian growers to see themselves as part of the global industry, whether that’s bananas and citrus, or mangoes and sweetpotato. The exchange of information and broader perspectives can provide real benefits.

Ms Irene Kernot

This exchange is one reason why Irene advocates strongly for farmer exchange activities and field trips. ‘These allow farmers to learn from each other in real farming situations, rather than having information mediated by researchers or program managers.

‘In a recent ACIAR-supported project we had sweetpotato growers from Papua New Guinea visit growers in Queensland where they picked up ideas that were immediately useful to them, but which we hadn’t even considered in the research project.’

Irene Kernot, centre, with researchers and farmers taking part in an ACIAR-supported sweetpotato project in Papua New Guinea. Photo: ACIAR

Irene (centre) with researchers and farmers taking part in an ACIAR-supported sweetpotato project in Papua New Guinea.

Irene is welcomed by a rural community in the highlands of PNG during a project site visit.

Irene is welcomed by a rural community in the highlands of Papua New Guinea during a project site visit.

Irene inspecting crops in the highlands of Papua New Guinea.

Irene with Australian researchers and local Papua New Guinean community involved in an ACIAR-funded project to support commercial sweetpotato production.

Innovation in agriculture

She said there was a lot of innovation happening on farms and along supply chains, which has been an ongoing source of inspiration, particularly in her recent work with ACIAR.

‘I’ve seen a lot of people being brave enough to try new things and create really exciting opportunities – women in Papua New Guinea making a business out of sweetpotato flour and biscuits, and a cocoa grower in Vanuatu who went from selling beans as a commodity to establishing his own boutique chocolate-making businesses.

‘And it’s happening in agricultural extension too, in countries such as Pakistan, where female “social mobilisers” go out into the villages with the men so that women can actually be part of the training, challenging accepted norms.’

As Irene looks forward to more time with family and friends in retirement, exploring the outdoors, reading, cooking and gardening, her parting advice is to ‘be brave, keep an open mind and eat more fruit and vegetables – particularly vegetables.'