Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry portfolio
Verified figures
- Contracts (all years): 15,253
- Contract value (all years): 5,715,726,314 AUD
- Contract value (2026): 300,684,278 AUD
- APS headcount: 7,012
- Budget 2026-27: 3,253,743 thousand AUD
- Highest total remuneration: 982,678 AUD
- Directory roles: 159
Figures use publishable matches only (alias, abn, exact, case, punct, trading_name, wide_exact). Retrieved 2026-09-01.
Coverage — named in the headline (40)
- 2026-07-27 — Colbeck learns DAFF had three AGC contracts
- 2026-04-12 — Unsteady as she goes in DAFF and DCCEEW’s executive ranks
- 2026-02-10 — DAFF secretary Victoria Anderson makes estimates debut
- 2026-01-08 — Former DAFF secretary returns to Victoria
- 2025-12-02 — Adam Fennessy: Department of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry former secretary
- 2025-11-27 — Treasury mandarin lands gig leading DAFF
- 2025-11-05 — DAFF invites ideas for Indigenous economic inclusion, target to build $100 billion industry by 2030
- 2025-10-08 — DAFF secretary was ‘terminated’, confirms APS commissioner
- 2025-09-04 — Movers & Shakers: DAFF secretary out, AIATSIS welcomes chair
- 2025-09-04 — Secretary to depart DAFF by end of month
- 2024-11-18 — Adam Fennessy: Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
- 2024-09-12 — DAFF secretary treads delicately with political heat on live sheep exports
- 2024-07-09 — DAFF to refresh agricultural counsellor program
- 2024-05-21 — Audit scores DAFF’s design of national soil strategy poorly for failing to show basis of decisions
- 2024-03-12 — DAFF ‘fell short of required standards’, says Fennessy
- 2024-02-07 — Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry board nominations go digital
- 2024-02-05 — DAFF rejects re-export application, leaving livestock in limbo
- 2023-12-05 — DAFF told to improve governance, policy capability
- 2023-11-05 — Andrew Metcalfe: formerly Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
- 2023-10-30 — Where’s the beef? DAFF votes for walkouts, coordinated APS strikes loom
- 2023-10-08 — CSIRO and DAFF working on Australia’s food needs for 2050
- 2023-10-04 — DAFF staff apply to strike over APS pay
- 2023-09-14 — Capability review tasks DAFF with four ‘urgent’ priorities
- 2023-08-31 — ANZSOG CEO Adam Fennessy named new DAFF secretary
- 2023-08-14 — Historic alliance to buoy Australian horticulture exports, bring research base to DAFF negotiations
- 2023-07-25 — Capability reviews should have right of reply, DAFF says
- 2023-05-24 — DAFF officials shed light on unsolicited PwC proposal in senate estimates
- 2022-12-20 — DAFF outlines initiatives to support winter grain exports
- 2022-11-21 — Andrew Metcalfe: Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry secretary
- 2022-10-19 — Auditor-general finds DAFF partly effective at new legislation implementation
- 2022-09-07 — Australia must adapt to an unpredictable biosecurity environment, says DAFF
- 2022-08-10 — Not complacent, never complacent Agriculture sec tells committee
- 2022-06-29 — Agriculture 4.0 is helping farmers do more with less
- 2022-02-21 — Agriculture minister wants ‘best available science’ for drought plan
- 2022-02-13 — Agriculture minister brushes off Victoria’s stance on non-lethal dingo management
- 2021-08-10 — Agriculture department proposes panel to improve market access for producers
- 2021-03-31 — Integrity commissioner reminds agencies of corruption risks following the ‘grooming’ of Agriculture official
- 2021-03-29 — Ex Agriculture department employee sentenced for abuse of public office
- 2021-03-17 — Agriculture department reviewing $13m overspend on water buyback
- 2021-01-28 — Movers & shakers: Agriculture department appoints deputy secretary
Passing mentions (10 shown)
Mentioned in the text but not the headline, so often not about this agency.
- 2026-08-30 — Suburban fox first Australian land mammal to test positive to H5 bird flu
- 2026-08-23 — Australia’s first reported mammal death attributed to bird flu
- 2026-08-12 — Little penguins to receive bird flu vaccines
- 2026-08-05 — Bureau of Meteorology launches strategic review
- 2026-08-03 — What AI data centres really mean for Australia’s water supply
- 2026-07-13 — From paper to pixels: The digital border vision finally lands
- 2026-07-13 — Digital arrival card rolled out to streamline travel
- 2026-07-05 — CSIRO confirms bird flu in NSW
- 2026-07-02 — Movers & Shakers: Queensland and WA’s big week
- 2026-06-22 — Sick and dead birds reported as avian flu concerns grow
Names over time
What each source called this agency, and in which years. Taken from the sources themselves, not from a register of establishment dates — those are not published.
| Reported as | Source | Years | Rows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry ⚠️ | APSC APS Employment Data | 2010-11 to 2025-26 | 1,342 |
| Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry ⚠️ | APSC agency metrics | 2010-11 to 2025-26 | 110 |
| Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry | AusTender (names as at today, not as at the contract) | 2012-13 to 2026-27 | 14,973 |
| Agriculture ⚠️ | APSC APS Employment Data | 2013-14 to 2021-22 | 706 |
| Agriculture ⚠️ | APSC agency metrics | 2013-14 to 2019-20 | 36 |
| Agriculture and Water Resources ⚠️ | APSC APS Employment Data | 2015-16 to 2017-18 | 839 |
| Agriculture and Water Resources ⚠️ | APSC agency metrics | 2015-16 to 2018-19 | 35 |
| Department of Agriculture ⚠️ | Annual report KMP disclosure | 2018-19 | 26 |
| Department of Agriculture ⚠️ | Annual report governance tables | 2018-19 | 1 |
| Department of Agriculture ⚠️ | Annual report expenditure | 2018-19 | 8 |
| Agriculture, Water and the Environment ⚠️ | APSC APS Employment Data | 2019-20 to 2021-22 | 588 |
| Agriculture, Water and the Environment * ⚠️ | APSC APS Employment Data | 2019-20 to 2020-21 | 4 |
| Agriculture, Water and the Environment * ⚠️ | APSC agency metrics | 2019-20 to 2020-21 | 26 |
| Department of Agriculture ⚠️ | AusTender (names as at today, not as at the contract) | 2019-20 | 280 |
| Agriculture, Water and the Environment ⚠️ | APSC agency metrics | 2020-21 to 2021-22 | 39 |
| Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry | Annual report KMP disclosure | 2021-22 to 2024-25 | 52 |
| Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry | Annual report governance tables | 2021-22 to 2024-25 | 18 |
| Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry | Annual report expenditure | 2021-22 to 2024-25 | 56 |
| Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry | Portfolio Budget Statements | 2024-25 to 2029-30 | 750 |
⚠️ This agency has not always carried its current name. Figures in the earlier years were reported as Agriculture (2013-14 to 2021-22); Agriculture and Water Resources (2015-16 to 2018-19); Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (2010-11 to 2025-26); Agriculture, Water and the Environment (2019-20 to 2021-22); **Agriculture, Water and the Environment *** (2019-20 to 2020-21); Department of Agriculture (2018-19 to 2018-19). They are shown here because the series is continuous, not because the agency is.
Payments to organisations — as reported by the agency
| Category | Payments | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Non-consultancy contracts | 20 | $316,801,445 |
| Consultancy | 19 | $54,536,847 |
| Advertising and campaigns | 25 | $17,906,688 |
Largest recipients across all reported years
| Organisation | ABN | Reported total | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jones Lang LaSalle (ACT) Pty Ltd (+2 other name(s) on this ABN) | 69008585260 | $114,044,283 | 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25 |
| DMS Maritime Pty Limited | 57078359065 | $86,369,903 | 2021-22 |
| Hays Specialist Recruitment Australia Pty Ltd (+1 other name(s) on this ABN) | 47001407281 | $46,830,018 | 2021-22, 2022-23 |
| Price Waterhouse Coopers Consulting (Australia) Pty Limited | 20607773295 | $37,537,638 | 2021-22, 2022-23 |
| DXC Enterprise Australia Pty Ltd | 16612896527 | $36,049,494 | 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25 |
| Local Land Services | 57876455969 | $33,327,165 | 2021-22 |
| Universal McCann | — | $16,796,455 | 2018-19, 2021-22 |
| Noetc Solutions Pty Limited (+1 other name(s) on this ABN) | 87098132024 | $7,673,525 | 2021-22, 2022-23, 2024-25 |
| Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu | 74490121060 | $4,810,307 | 2021-22, 2022-23 |
| GoSource Pty. Ltd. | 41161080146 | $4,504,823 | 2021-22 |
| Whereto | — | $462,087 | 2021-22 |
| The Social Research Centre | — | $219,611 | 2018-19 |
From the expenditure disclosures in each annual report — a separate source from the AusTender contract figures above, and not directly comparable with them.
Workforce profile — as at 2025-12-31
| Measure | Value | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| % CALD | 23.9% | at this date |
| % Female | 54.8% | at this date |
| % Indigenous | 2.7% | at this date |
| % at the APS classification level | 72.0% | at this date |
| % non-ongoing | 5.0% | at this date |
| % part-time (ongoing employees) | 11.6% | at this date |
| % who have worked in only one agency (ongoing employees) | 70.9% | at this date |
| % with a bachelors degree or higher | 77.1% | at this date |
| % with a disability | 4.2% | at this date |
| Exit rate - from agency (ongoing employees) | 8.1% | Year ending December 2025 |
| Headcount | 7,012 | at this date |
| Mean Age (years) | 43.6 years | at this date |
| Median LOS in APS (years) | 7.0 years | at this date |
| Separation rate - from APS (ongoing employees) | 5.6% | at this date |
APSC APS Employment Data, counting this agency including any bodies beneath it. Headcount, not FTE — the APSED release does not publish FTE.
Bodies beneath this agency — as at 2025-12-31
Australian Fisheries Management Authority · Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority
From the APSC sub-agency breakdown. A body listed here is counted inside the workforce profile above, so do not add the two.
Year by year
| Measure | 2010-11 | 2012-13 | 2013-14 | 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 | 2026-27 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| APS headcount | 5,219 | 5,185 | 4,644 | 4,639 | 5,034 | 5,232 | 5,219 | 5,003 | 7,201 | 7,183 | 7,795 | 5,564 | 5,889 | 6,979 | 7,012 | |
| SES | 107 | 99 | 92 | 89 | 123 | 46 | 52 | 82 | 77 | 45 | 41 | 46 | 45 | |||
| Contracts | 1 | 2,534 | 3,290 | 3,893 | 1,471 | 1,537 | 1,554 | 851 | 122 | |||||||
| Contract value | $75,524,665 | $592,940,088 | $800,147,327 | $1,122,622,583 | $578,182,785 | $1,210,996,038 | $854,028,841 | $268,724,296 | $212,559,692 | |||||||
| Budget ($000) | 3,078,561 | 3,253,743 | ||||||||||||||
| KMP disclosed | 26 | 9 | 14 | 24 | 5 | |||||||||||
| Top total pay | $780,032 | $876,779 | $849,570 | $852,043 | $982,678 |
An empty cell means no publishable row for that year — unknown, not nil. Never read a blank as a fall to zero. ⚠️ This agency has not always carried its current name. Figures in the earlier years were reported as Agriculture (2013-14 to 2021-22); Agriculture and Water Resources (2015-16 to 2018-19); Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (2010-11 to 2025-26); Agriculture, Water and the Environment (2019-20 to 2021-22); **Agriculture, Water and the Environment *** (2019-20 to 2020-21); Department of Agriculture (2018-19 to 2018-19). They are shown here because the series is continuous, not because the agency is.
Sources — annual reports
Each link opens transparency.gov.au — the published source the figures were read from. The label names the table to look for.
° The portal does not publish a path for this report, so the link opens the agency's reports on transparency.gov.au rather than that year directly. Pick the year from there.
