Zero Hunger

La Trobe tracks, measures and reports on waste quarterly, including the generation of food and organic waste.

La Trobe has implemented a comprehensive program to address student hunger and food insecurity. The university offers free food relief services across all campuses, including student pantries and food banks operated by the La Trobe Student Union (LTSU) and La Trobe Student Association (LTSA). These services provide students with access to essential food and household items. For students experiencing food insecurity, La Trobe also provides access to financial counselling services to assist in connecting with appropriate food relief resources.

La Trobe University actively promotes sustainable food choices across all its campuses, including vegetarian and vegan options. Read more.

Food outlets across all our campuses provide healthy and affordable food choices, including vegetarian and vegan options, LTU student discounts and fair trade options.

At our Bundoora Campus the local Kingsbury Drive Community Market that runs every Sunday, offers affordable fresh food for the community to purchase.

At our student accommodation, the Living at La Trobe team facilitates delivery of affordable fresh food to students, and the Fresh Food Corner, enables our student residents to pick up free fresh fruit, vegetables and long-life goods on-site.

Our Nangak Tamboree Wildlife Sanctuary shares information about Indigenous plants that can be used for food, and many of these plants can be purchased from the Sanctuary at affordable prices.

La Trobe University collaborates closely with local farmers and food producers, sharing access to food security and sustainable agriculture knowledge, as well as new technologies, to drive sustainable farming innovations and improve sustainable farming practices.

1. Smart Irrigation Systems

In partnership with Queensland ag-tech company Aglantis, La Trobe researchers have developed a smart irrigation system that utilizes AI to monitor environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, and seasonal weather patterns. This system optimizes water usage, reducing waste and fertilizer runoff, and has been successfully implemented on an 80-hectare sugarcane farm near Townsville.

2. Farm-Scale Natural Capital Accounting

La Trobe's Farm-scale Natural Capital Accounting project helps farmers to track and manage on-farm natural assets through a free digital tool and accounts system. The project – the first of its kind in Australia and the world – developed a methodology for measuring and communicating farm-scale environmental performance and natural capital management, integrating farm management operational data with environmental and biodiversity data to generate 50 farm-scale natural capital accounts. As sheep farmer Jo Bear from Loddon Vale describes: ‘This tool reduces our environmental footprint, it aligns with market demands and partnerships, shows the profitability of sustainable farming, fosters discussions with banks and authorities and brings well-being to farmers, families and communities’.

3. La Trobe Institute for Sustainable Agriculture and Food (LISAF)

LISAF conducts research across the agri-food-health chain, focusing on enhancing plant functionality to combat challenges like climate change. The institute's work includes developing crops with new properties and collaborating with industry partners to translate research into practical applications. Producers of seeds and seedlings will be able to use the analysis from our highly specialised plant-imaging technology to produce the best plants for our farmers.

4. Using Nitrogen Fixation to Sustainably increase crop yields for small-holder farmers in Africa

To feed a growing global population, we need to increase the sustainability of farming systems. Nitrogen is fundamental to crop growth, but much of the nitrogen required by cropping systems is provided by industrially produced fertilizers, the use of which is not only environmentally unsustainable, but also out of reach for many farmers in the developing world who cannot access or afford them. ENSA - Enabling Nutrient Symbioses for Agriculture – is a US$35 million international project funded by Gates Ag One aimed at using biological nitrogen fixation to sustainably increase crop yields for small-holder farmers in Africa. The project team includes La Trobe researcher Dugald Reid who is investigating the ways in which legumes interact with soil bacteria to convert nitrogen into usable nutrients. In June 2024, Reid and his ENSA collaborators published research in Nature which reported the discovery for the first time of the genetic off switch that controls the shutdown of the nitrogen fixation process. This helps lay the foundations for future research that provides new ways for us to manage our farming systems to reduce nitrogen fertiliser use, increase farm incomes and reduce the impact of nitrogen fertiliser use on the environment.

5. Reducing the Impact of the Gazania Weed on Grain Cropping Regions in Australia

In 2024, with funding from the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC), La Trobe researcher Ali Bajwa carried out physical surveys to identify Gazania hotspots, and in consultation with agronomists and chemical companies, identified a list of potential candidates for chemical control which were tested in glass house trials at La Trobe. These glass house trials created a shortlist of chemical control candidates which are now being tested in collaboration with growers in field trials in Loxton and Arno Bay in South Australia on sites with Gazania infestation.

6. ‘Wizards’ protecting wine from smoke taint

A smoke sensor developed by La Trobe University researchers that has the potential to save hundreds of millions of dollars in lost wine production is in the process of being rolled out across the wine industry, with monitors now being used to track the impact of bushfires ravaging the Grampians. Wine Industry Smoke Detectors (WISDs) – colloquially known as ‘wizards’ – track smoke events like bushfires and burn offs around vineyards and advise winegrowers whether it is likely to taint their grapes – and if they need to discard their season’s harvest, or use winemaking techniques to remove the taint. The smoke and other data collected by the WISDs, such as temperature and humidity, are transmitted to a central server that calculates a traffic light risk rating for smoke taint. The risk rating is communicated to vineyard managers in real time via a mobile phone app and can also be accessed via a dedicated website. Australian agtech provider Goanna Ag has now signed on to commercialise the WISDs over the next two years, during which time the hardware and algorithm will be further validated in real-world fire events and the network of WISDs expanded to other wine regions across Australia.

7. Growing Plants on the Moon

Known as Lunar Effects on Agricultural Flora (LEAF), the project will collect plant growth and development data that will help scientists understand the use of plants grown for both human nutrition and life support on the Moon and beyond.

Slated for a September 2026 launch, the consortium of partners who will pioneer this initiative includes a core group from the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Plants for Space (P4S), headquartered at the University of Adelaide.

The project is led by Space Lab Technologies and involves the University of Adelaide, La Trobe University, and NASA Kennedy Space Center, all P4S partners, as well as the United States Department of Agriculture, University of Colorado Boulder, and Purdue University, with additional analysis to be conducted by the P4S node at the University of Western Australia.

“This research will be a pivotal step toward understanding how we might use agriculture in space to support human crews, paving the way for sustained lunar exploration and even missions to Mars,” said Project Lead and Space Lab Vice President, Christine Escobar.

Leading Team: Associate Professor Robert Ross

La Trobe University offers free events specifically designed for local farmers, food producers, and regional stakeholders to connect, engage, and transfer knowledge.

• The Mann Lecture is a free annual public lecture held at our Albury-Wodonga Campus (also accessible online). 2024 Mann Lecture - Tech and AI in farming and water management

Join La Trobe's Professor Nick Bond for an exciting conversation about the opportunities for disruption and growth through tech and AI in farming and water management.

Panelists:

• Professor Nick Bond (Facilitator) - Director Centre for Freshwater Ecosystems, La Trobe University
• Stuart Upton - General Manger, Australia, AgriProve
• Lisa Ryan - General Manager, Digital and Business Innovation, North East Water

La Trobe's Procurement Procedure promotes practices that

• support the circular economy of the product or service throughout the entire life cycle
• prioritise materials and products that are renewal, recyclable and ethically sourced (look for certifications like Fair Trade, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) etc.)
• procure products with minimal packaging or packaging that is recyclable or compostable.
• prioritise local suppliers, foster community growth, create job opportunities and contribute to the local economies in which we operate

Staff experiencing difficulty can access referrals to food relief and material aid via Staff Wellbeing Connect, which offers confidential support and practical assistance. See Staff Health and Wellbeing