This project will develop a formal, structured, nationally recognised trade apprenticeship qualification that gives learners better career pathways and recognised skills, while strengthening agriculture’s ability to attract, develop and retain its future workforce.
Click across the tabs to view active and completed project stages. Consultation takes place at every stage of the project.
Australia’s agriculture industry offers diverse career opportunities and a wide range of skills, but these are not always visible or consistently recognised through current training and career pathways.
This project will develop a formal, structured, nationally recognised Agricultural Trade Qualification that gives learners clearer pathways into the industry and stronger recognition of their skills. It will also lift the profile of agricultural careers and support workforce attraction, development and retention.
The qualification will be developed using existing units of competency from the AHC Agriculture, Horticulture and Conservation and Land Management Training Package, with scope to develop new units where evidence shows they are needed.
Work will be undertaken in accordance with the 2025 Training Package Organising Framework (TPOF 2025) and relevant policy requirements. While this project will deliver the qualification, implementation as an apprenticeship will require state and territory support, including funding and trade recognition arrangements, before RTOs are able to offer the qualification.
Background work informing this project
This project builds on strong industry evidence, including Skills Insight’s Ag Trade Feasibility Report, the concept for an Ag Trade Apprenticeship and the Career Pathways for Agricultural Trades Project.
Occupations
The qualification is intended to support pathways into a wide range of primary production and agribusiness sectors.
Technical Committee and working groups
A Technical Committee has been assembled to guide the project. The Committee has provided input into the Terms of Reference and Consultation Strategy documents available below.
In addition to the Technical Committee, sector specific working groups have been engaged to contribute their expertise to the development of the training materials and will be consulted in conjunction with the Technical Committee.
This project will deliver the qualification. Implementation as an apprenticeship will require state and territory support, including funding and trade recognition arrangements, before RTOs are able to offer the qualification.
Subscribe for updates
If you would like to receive updates about this project, please subscribe to our newsletter and select ‘Agriculture, Horticulture, Conservation & Land Management’ as one of your industries of interest.
Register for a roundtable
and networking event
If you would like to discuss the future of apprenticeships and trade careers in agriculture, please register for one of the roundtable and networking events happening between 10 February – 28 May 2026 as featured on the VET Workforce Project webpage.
These events are being run to provide opportunities to contribute to several related projects and support the development of local connections.
Timeline
Project team
Lucinda O’Brien
Project Manager
[email protected]
Andrew Horgan
Stakeholder Engagement Manager
[email protected]
Peter Miller
Developer
Opportunities for stakeholder input
Stakeholder input is appreciated throughout the duration of this project. The qualification will be drafted in consultation with the Technical Committee and their networks. Opportunities to provide targeted feedback will occur when the draft materials are made available in July-August 2026, and again to review and check final drafts in November 2026. However, your feedback is welcomed and encouraged at any time.
A list of key stakeholder organisations is currently being identified for this project. Skills Insight will ensure that contact is made with each of these organisations during the development of this project to seek involvement and views. Consultation is not limited to the organisations on this list. This list simply helps us to identify organisations that, because of their industry role, size or specialty, are likely to have a key interest in the development and outcomes of this project. If you are aware of an organisation that you think should be involved, please contact the project team.
For updates and consultation opportunities, please subscribe to news and updates. Alternatively, please feel free to contact the project manager, Lucinda O’Brien on 03 9321 3509 or [email protected]
This project is part of the Annual Training Product Development Plan 2025-26.
Work is currently underway to develop an Agricultural Trade Qualification that gives learners clearer pathways into the industry and stronger recognition of their skills. Consultation sessions are scheduled for industry stakeholders, farmers, students and employees to share insights on current and emerging workforce needs in broadacre cropping, livestock and dairy production.
Register for consultation sessions
These sessions provide an opportunity for stakeholders to meet the project team, understand the purpose of the qualification, view the draft and provide feedback. Some online sessions will focus on specific sectors, while the in-person sessions will cover all sectors and delivery and assessment.
Online sessions
Note: all times listed for online sessions are in AEST.
All times listed for in-person sessions are local times.
In-person sessions
Work to date
Initial discussions at the Technical Committee meeting drew on expertise to help define the skills, knowledge and capabilities expected of graduates working at trade level in agriculture. This will ensure the qualification is grounded in real workplace roles such as senior farmhands and leading hands.
Subject matter expert (SME) working groups across broadacre cropping, livestock and dairy production reviewed the proposed skills and knowledge requirements through structured sessions, assigning relevance scores (sector-specific, shared or common) and frequency ratings (rare, frequent or daily) to each item. SMEs confirmed key capabilities such as production record keeping, machinery operation and agronomic decision-making, while identifying overlaps, sector-specific nuances and emerging priorities to inform qualification design.
Priorites included strengthening foundation and transferable skills such as conflict resolution, resilience, numeracy and literacy, alongside growing expectations for digital literacy and awareness of emerging technologies such as virtual fencing, robotic dairies and data-driven decision making. Gaps were identified in areas such as agricultural production system technologies and the use of production data and information systems, with new units proposed to address these emerging skill requirements. Regional and system‑specific differences were also considered, with elective units and guidance for RTOs identified as key mechanisms to support flexibility while maintaining national consistency.
Next steps
Continued engagement with the Technical Committee will further review and refine skills and knowledge mapping, test emerging themes, and confirm expectations for trade-level outcomes. This work will directly inform the development of the draft qualification, including its structure, content and alignment with the Training Package Organising Framework. The draft qualification, newly created units of competency and other accompanying documentation will be released for broader consultation with industry, government and training stakeholders from 1 July to 31 August 2026.
Subscribe for updates
If you would like to receive updates about this project, please subscribe to our newsletter and select ‘Agriculture, Horticulture, Conservation & Land Management’ as one of your industries of interest.
This project will deliver the qualification. Implementation as an apprenticeship will require state and territory support, including funding and trade recognition arrangements, before RTOs are able to offer the qualification.
This stage has not yet commenced.
At the broad consultation stage, we present and discuss potential solutions, collecting feedback from a wide range of stakeholder across the country. It follows consultation with various stakeholders that has already taken place throughout the project.
This stage has not yet commenced.
As part of consensus gathering, we check our work with stakeholders to confirm that solutions are in line with expectations.
This stage has not yet commenced.
At the finalisation stage, final checks are conducted and the outcomes of the project are submitted to the Department for consideration. Following this, outcomes are published or enacted.