Many people would shy away from the concept of three generations working together in a family business.

But not the Radford family, which has proudly combined experience, skills, innovation, investment and vision to grow their business RADCO Agriculture.

Caitlin, 26, her father Shane, 61, grandfather Reuben, 91, and their spouses Owen, Sharni and Gladys have an unwavering commitment to the successful and sustainable management of their farms, now spanning 600 acres near Moriarty in Tasmania’s north west.

Caitlin is a fifth generation Radford farmer, and the first female. She started as an apprentice, which led to being named the 2020 Australian Apprentice of the Year across all industries. She has travelled the world on a range of agricultural scholarships and bursaries, completed leadership and management courses, and donated hundreds of hours of her time as a volunteer to organise Agfest, and numerous horse and community events.

RADCO Agriculture has three core principles that underpin its success – family and communication; future proofing (i.e. water); and upgrading technology to improve efficiency and sustainability.

“We couldn’t do what we do without water,” Caitlin said.

“This season was very dry and difficult for us and our bore ran dry for the first time since we have been here. But having Tasmanian Irrigation water from the Sassafras Wesley Vale Irrigation Scheme gives us more control to water when we want, control disease and ensure our efficiency, productivity and sustainability commitment isn’t compromised.”

“And now with the SWIS augmentation going through approvals, we can bring forward our future proofing plans and continue to focus on growing the best possible crops.”

Caitlin’s family’s highly productive soils are nurtured for the production of beans, potatoes, broccoli, peas, carrots, brussels sprouts, wheat, grass seed and silage.

They continue to invest in irrigation infrastructure and have applied for an additional 250 megalitres of water from the 9,200-megalitre SWIS augmentation. They have a 220 megalitre water entitlement from the current scheme, which was commissioned in 2012.

Caitlin said although the price of augmentation water would be higher than for the original scheme, it was incredibly important that farmers focused their attention on the future when determining how much water they should purchase.

“The mentality of buying enough water to get the current generation through each season has to be replaced by considering how much water will be required by future generations,” she said.

“We have seen what water has delivered for other regions in Tasmania, enabling farmers to diversify and intensify, and for the next generation to return home.

“There are numerous examples of young people moving back to farms in this area, bringing new ideas, adopting technology and participating in community activities.

“And this has all happened because of access to highly reliable irrigation water.

“This augmentation offers our whole district the opportunity to future proof itself, and we just need to make sure that we are ready for the new water.”

Sassafras Wesley Vale Irrigation Scheme Augmentation

Current scheme capacity	5,660 megalitres
Augmentation capacity	9,200 megalitres
Total augmentation forecast cost	$124.2 million
Estimated number of irrigators	94
Kms of pipeline	104
Pump stations	2
Anticipated construction start date	August 2025
Anticipated first water delivery	November 2027