CRDC undertakes an annual survey of cotton growers to gather information about farming practices and growers’ views on research, development and extension. This information helps to inform CRDC about the benefits of the research it invests in. Change in industry practice can be quantified by comparing information across the surveys conducted over the past 20 years.

Previous surveys have included a number of core annual questions and then a number of focus areas to investigate specific aspects of the farming system.

In 2017 CRDC undertook a review of the aims, purpose and design for the survey. The 2017 Grower Survey was developed by a working group including CRDC, Cotton Australia, researchers and others.

The overall survey program is guided by CRDC’s Monitoring and Evaluation Framework and supplemented by research questions relevant to the seasonal conditions. This survey gathered midterm assessment of growers’ views of CRDC’s performance against the Strategic R&D Plan 2013-18.

For the first time in 2017, CRDC has published the results of this survey in two formats: a PDF of the survey report; and an interactive online digital dashboard, available at: www.crdc.com.au/publications/growersurvey