The new frontier: Navigating Australia’s top farming risks in 2026
An ever-evolving risk profile continues to redefine what farming clients need from the insurance profession. F arming has always required resilience. Seasonal Ben Church, General Manager – Broker Distribution at Allianz Australia, says, “Farming operations have become
volatility, commodity cycles and natural weather perils are long-standing realities for producers across Australia, and these challenges have always needed strong risk management. Over the past decade or so, however, the farm risk profile has changed considerably, as agricultural operations have evolved, moving from a predominantly physical risk to a blended physical, digital and structural risk profile. The scale of the sector reinforces why this matters. Agriculture accounts for 55% of Australia’s land use and approximately 74% of national water consumption, supports more than 315,000 jobs, and contributes over $80 billion in exports in 2023–24, according to ABARES’ Snapshot of Australian Agriculture.
significantly bigger and a lot more efficient. They’ve become much more sophisticated enterprises, and technology is an essential part of that development.
“Regardless of whether they’re insured or not, farmers manage risk every single day. Because of that, they have a comprehensive understanding of risk, and are among the best risk managers you’d find in Australia.”
“That creates new opportunities, and new risks that need to be managed.”
The rate of change in the farming sector is one that has actually outpaced many other sectors, says Caleb Richards, Practice Leader Agriculture at AgriRisk – and the NIBA Broker of the Year 2025.
Consequently, operational disruption, whether physical, digital or structural, has significant implications.
4 A NIBA Brokers’ Guide: to farming the future
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