The Australian sheep industry has taken a significant step toward a more sustainable and data-driven future with the national launch of the Green Sheep Project, officially unveiled at Agfest in Tasmania.

The initiative brings together producers, government, Natural Resource Management (NRM) and Landcare organisations, and supply chain partners to strengthen sustainability practices and improve environmental reporting across the sector.

The project, led nationally by Sheep Producers Australia, is a three-year, approximately $3 million initiative designed to equip sheep producers with practical tools to measure, manage, and communicate their environmental performance. It focuses on building producer confidence in sustainability reporting, improving natural capital outcomes, and supporting long-term climate resilience across Australia’s sheep-producing regions.

A key strength of the Green Sheep Project is its whole-of-industry approach. Delivery is being coordinated through regional Natural Resource Management and Landcare groups, ensuring the program is tailored to local production systems and landscapes.

The delivery partners include:

Wheatbelt NRM (Western Australia)

NRM South (Tasmania)

Glenelg Hopkins CMA (Victoria)

Holbrook Landcare Network (New South Wales)

In Western Australia, Wheatbelt NRM is leading the local rollout of the project. Our focus is on helping producers better understand and measure the environmental role of sheep grazing in broadacre and mixed farming systems. This includes improving pasture management and strengthening natural capital reporting.

Across its three-year lifespan, the Green Sheep Project is designed to provide sheep producers with:

Practical, on-farm tools for tracking environmental performance

Better grazing and pasture management strategies

Supply chain-aligned sustainability data

Improved capacity to respond to climate and market expectations

Stronger evidence of natural capital and environmental stewardship

The initiative also aims to strengthen the link between on-farm practices and market access, ensuring Australian sheep producers can demonstrate sustainability credentials in increasingly demanding global markets.

In addition to the national Agfest launch, the Green Sheep Project also held its first launch event in Katanning, Western Australia, bringing the initiative directly to local sheep producers in one of the state’s key agricultural regions. The Katanning event provided early engagement with producers, allowing them to learn about the project’s goals, ask questions, and explore how the program will be implemented in the Wheatbelt over the coming years.

The Green Sheep Project represents a shift toward a more evidence-based, climate-smart sheep industry in Australia. If you are interested in leading the way by being part of the Green Sheep Project and demonstrating your sustainable practices, we’d love to hear from you.

Funded project support is available to help demonstrate the environmental impact of sheep on your farm.

Expressions of interest close 15 July 2026 for a 12-month trial.

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The project is supported by Meat & Livestock Australia, Australian Wool Innovation, Integrity Systems Company, AUS-MEAT, the Australian Meat Industry Council, the Southern Australian Livestock Research Council, and the WA Livestock Research Council, bringing together on-farm action with whole-of-supply-chain expertise.

The Green Sheep Project is supported by the Australian Government through the Climate-Smart Agriculture Program under the Natural Heritage Trust.