NSW Primary Industries Sector Reaches Record $25.5 Billion In 2024/25

The NSW Primary Industries have reached a historic milestone, recording an estimated Gross Value of Production (GVP) of $25.5 billion, underscoring the sector’s enduring resilience, ongoing innovation, and its vital contribution to driving the state’s economy.

This record figure for the 2024/25 finan­cial year, released by the NSW Govern­ment, marks a 22% increase from last year and is $2.4 billion above the previous record of $23.1 billion set in 2021-22.

Significantly, it is 16% above the 5-year average and more than double the $12.5 billion recorded in 2014-15 demonstrating a sustained growth across all sectors.

Local State Member for Orange Phil Do­nato said: “This milestone is a win for every rural and regional community in NSW. Our producers are proving that innovation and hard work can deliver extraordinary out­comes.”

“Primary industries are the lifeblood of our towns. Their success fuels local jobs, sup­ports families, and strengthens our commu­nities.”

The strong GVP is built on record-break­ing performance across key agricultural sectors, including unprecedented red meat and poultry production, exceptional horticul­ture output, and historic winter crop yield, particularly chickpeas, alongside above-av­erage summer crop results, notably cotton and sorghum.

Local Canowindra farmer, Michael Pay­ten, said: “While input costs are all going up so have our commodity prices, so we’re having a better season than we’ve had for a while.

“The productivity of the farm has been as good as it’s ever been. Our prime lamb pric­es have been defying gravity and lucerne hay saw a fair price rise too as things dried out a little bit and demand increased.”

For more information and to access the full report, visit the NSW Department of Pri­mary Industries and Regional Development (NSW DPIRD) PDI webpage: www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/about-us/publications/pdi