Following a sell-out 2023 event in Adelaide, evokeAG. organiser AgriFutures Australia in partnership with the Western Australian Government has announced the event will head west to WA in February 2024.

AgriFutures evokeAG. 2024 will take place in Perth on Tuesday, 20 and Wednesday, 21 February at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre.

AgriFutures managing director John Harvey said evokeAG. is the Asia Pacific region’s premier agrifood tech event.

Since 2019, through a two-day event and an online community, AgriFutures Australia has brought together the agrifood tech ecosystem to connect and facilitate collaboration between farmers, innovators, investors, researchers, corporates, and government.

Mr Harvey said the decision to move the 2024 event from Melbourne to Perth speaks to the evolution of evokeAG. and reflects the substantial growth of the agrifood tech community.

“evokeAG. planned on returning to its roots in 2024 holding the two-day event at the Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne. However, we had an exceptional response to evokeAG. 2023 with a sell-out event. We now require a venue that can accommodate this demand and regrettably there are no suitable venues in Melbourne, available for our desired dates.

He said the ecosystem has become a mainstream area of interest for investors. In 2019 investment into Australian agrifood tech innovation was approximately $ USD90 million ($AUD135 million). At evokeAG. 2023 AgFunder announced that in 2022 that figure had risen to $USD248 million ($AUD371.4 million).

“More broadly, we’ve seen a higher volume of quality agrifood tech startups emerge – partially because of new talent in the ecosystem – plus increased resources from government as well as corporates.

“We’re excited to now be in a position to host evokeAG. in Perth in February 2024. There are a number of reasons why the West Coast will make a great host state – the proximity to South East Asia, its innovative farmers, a diverse range of industries, strong exporting experience and an established and vibrant agrifood tech innovation community.

“These are all attributes that will be critical in supporting us to deliver a world-class international event for our domestic and international audiences.”

Western Australian Minister for Agriculture and Food; Forestry; Small Business, Jackie Jarvis MLC said driving innovation and increasing adoption of technology across the agrifood supply chain was a key priority for the Western Australian Government.

“WA food and beverage producers are some of the most innovative in the world. Our State’s strong connection with Asia and our excellent universities means we are well placed to become a hub for agrifood innovation and investment.

“We look forward to evokeAG. 2024 bringing delegates together from around the world and across Australia, to connect and collaborate for the future of our food and farming systems.”

Event details including speakers, startup and investment programs, networking opportunities, and sideline activities will be released in the coming months. Early bird tickets are expected to go on sale in mid-2023.