AS water scarcity and climate pressures continue to challenge growers around the world, vegetablesWA recently welcomed a delegation of Portuguese producers to Perth for a firsthand look at how WA vegetable growers are maximising water efficiency and productivity under some of the state's most challenging growing conditions.

As climate shifts and water scarcity continue to challenge regions like Alentejo and Odemira, the European growers visited WA to explore how local producers are able to achieve high-yielding vegetable crops while working within strict water allocations and highly porous, sandy soils.

The tour gave visitors a firsthand look at how WA growers use smart agricultural technology, irrigation audits, and precise scheduling methods to support efficient and productive farming operations.

We spoke with Brendan Augustin, Director of Bina Group Pty Ltd, whose work spans government relations, strategic business development and the delivery of international projects. Having played a key role in bringing the Portuguese delegation to Western Australia, Brendan discussed the purpose of the visit and what the group was hoping to learn.

Why did you decide to come to Western Australia for your study tour?

Western Australia is internationally recognised as one of the world's leading examples of farming successfully under conditions of increasing water scarcity. Many of the climatic challenges facing Western Australia today are very similar to those experienced in southern Portugal, particularly in regions such as Alentejo and Odemira. These include declining rainfall, increasing temperatures, more frequent droughts and growing competition for limited water resources, although as we learned during the visit, the climate change impacts in WA are much more significant than in Portugal.

Western Australia also has an excellent reputation for combining practical farming experience with research, innovation and strong water governance. The opportunity to learn directly from growers, Vegetables WA and researchers made WA an ideal destination for our study visit.

What did you take away from the farms you visited while you were here?

One of our biggest takeaways was the very high level of professionalism and technical sophistication demonstrated by Western Australian vegetable growers.

Irrigation decisions are increasingly based on data, and we appreciated seeing how growers have adapted to farming on extremely sandy soils, where water can move rapidly beyond the root zone if irrigation is not carefully managed. Despite these challenging conditions, growers are consistently producing high-quality vegetables through careful management and continual improvement.

While Portugal has invested significantly in major water infrastructure, particularly through the Alqueva Multipurpose Project, we were interested in understanding how water is managed at the farm level and how individual growers maximise productivity from every megalitre of water available.

Above all, we were impressed by the openness of the growers in sharing their experiences, successes and lessons learned.

Very much so.

Although our farming systems differ in some respects, many of the underlying challenges are remarkably similar.

Growers in both Portugal and Western Australia are dealing with increasing pressure on water resources, greater climate variability, rising temperatures, labour shortages, increasing input costs and the need to maintain profitability while meeting high environmental standards.

Labour was an area of particular interest to our delegation. Like Portugal, many horticultural producers in Western Australia face ongoing challenges in securing a reliable seasonal workforce. It was valuable to learn about Australia's Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) Scheme and hear directly from growers about how it supports workforce stability.

It requires strong collaboration between growers, researchers, industry organisations and government agencies. Those partnerships are something we believe can continue to develop between Portugal and WA.

Is there anything else you would like to share about the visit?

Another notable difference is the regulatory environment in which growers operate. Portuguese producers work within the European Union's comprehensive regulatory framework covering environmental protection, food safety and labour standards. While Western Australian growers also operate under rigorous requirements, the delegation observed that the EU framework is generally more extensive and prescriptive.

Was it helpful to see how other countries are managing some of the most challenging growing conditions?

Absolutely. One of the greatest values of international study visits is the opportunity to see how similar problems are approached in different environments.

“No country has all the answers, but every country develops solutions that may be adapted elsewhere.”

Western Australia has accumulated decades of practical experience responding to declining rainfall and increasing water scarcity. Seeing those lessons applied on commercial farms provides insights that cannot be obtained simply by reading technical reports.

The visit also confirmed that successful water management depends on more than technology alone.

It requires strong collaboration between growers, researchers, industry organisations and government agencies. Those partnerships are something we believe can continue to develop between Portugal and WA.

One particularly interesting aspect of the visit was learning about the differences between the Australian and Portuguese water allocation systems.

In Western Australia, once a producer has secured a water allocation, there is generally no volumetric charge for the water used, provided the allocation is not exceeded. In contrast, growers within Portugal's irrigation perimeters pay for every cubic metre of water delivered.

We also learned that water allocations can often be traded between users within the same management area in Western Australia. This provides flexibility by allowing water to move to where it is most needed or can generate the greatest value.

There are also important differences in infrastructure responsibilities. In Western Australia, growers generally bear the full cost of developing and maintaining their own water infrastructure, including bores, pumps and on-farm distribution systems. In Portugal's irrigation perimeters, the major water infrastructure and distribution network to the farm gate are typically provided and managed by the irrigation authority, with growers purchasing the water delivered through that system.

Both approaches have their strengths. The Portuguese system of volumetric charging encourages careful water use, while the Western Australian system provides flexibility through water trading. Comparing these approaches provided valuable insights for the delegation.

We were also very interested to learn about the extensive use of groundwater by vegetable growers in Western Australia and how these resources are monitored, allocated and managed for long-term sustainability.

Finally, we would like to sincerely thank vegetablesWA and the growers who generously welcomed us onto their farms and openly shared their knowledge and experience.

Although Australia and Portugal are geographically distant, the agricultural sectors in both countries face many of the same challenges. This visit highlighted the value of bringing growers together to share practical solutions, compare approaches and learn from one another's experiences. The relationships established during the tour have created a strong foundation for ongoing collaboration and knowledge sharing that will benefit growers in both regions for years to come.