The 1957 Murray Committee report on Australian Universities recommended that a Faculty of Agriculture be established at the University of Tasmania because of agriculture’s importance
to the state.

The founding Professor, George Wade, was appointed in 1962, and the first intake of students occurred in 1963. Professor Wade and three colleagues taught across all of the disciplines in the early years, though in time expertise in plant pathology, microbiology, biochemistry, agronomy, soil science, livestock production, horticulture, farm management and entomology were delivered.

In an interview for the University of Tasmania Oral History Project in 1983, Professor George Wade reflected on the challenge of delivering a broad-reaching course to the meet the needs of students and the Tasmanian agricultural industry.

“Graduates in agricultural science may conduct quite basic fundamental research after graduation, they may be engaged in applied research, or in fact the majority of them are engaged in advisory type of work, or management type of work. With small resources we had to try and provide a type of course which would be suitable for all these purposes,” Professor George Wade.

Over the past 60 years, our research and teaching staff have trained hundreds of successful agricultural leaders and innovators who are addressing some of the world’s biggest challenges using science, technology, and business skills.

Past students in senior positions give credit to the breadth of the course in science and technology as a foundation on which they have built and supported successful careers in agribusiness and research.

The connection with the Tasmanian Government’s agriculture department, now named the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania, has been a strong theme throughout the past 60 years. This collaboration has enabled many benefits for Tasmania’s agricultural industries.

A milestone was achieved in 1997 with the establishment by Professor Rob Clarke of the Tasmanian Institute of Agricultural Research as a joint venture between the University of Tasmania and the Tasmanian Government.

TIAR was later amalgamated with the disciplines of Agricultural Science, to form the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA) as it is known today.

The joint venture is a successful model. In 2022 it generated $2.50 of external investment for research and industry development in Tasmania for every $1 of government spending. The research portfolio of TIA is currently more than $40 million, with more than 30 PhD students graduating each year in addition to a similar number of undergraduates and Masters coursework students.

The Tasmanian agriculture industry has changed dramatically since the Faculty of Agriculture was launched in 1963, but some things remain the same. A strong spirit of camaraderie between staff and students and a passion for agriculture are common theme in accounts from Ag Science alumni (aka “aggies”) across the past sixty years.

1957: Establishment of a Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Tasmania recommended by the Murray Committee on Australian Universities.

1962: Dr George Wade appointed inaugural Chair of Agricultural Science.

1963: First intake of undergraduate students in the Faculty of Agricultural Science.

1969: Opening of the Horticultural Research Centre.

1970: Establishment of experimental vineyard at Horticultural Research Centre.

1973: The first PhD awarded by the Faculty of Agricultural Science, to Dr Glen Kile.

1979: University Farm at Cambridge was acquired with assistance from the Tasmanian Government and a public appeal.

1988: New facilities opened in extended Life Sciences building at Sandy Bay campus.

1995: Opening of the Agricultural Science and Research Facilities Wing at the North-West Coast centre of the University of Tasmania, containing the Cuthbertson Agricultural Research Laboratories.

1997: The Tasmanian Institute of Agricultural Research was formed as a joint venture between University of Tasmania and Tasmanian Government, bringing together two of the state’s major agricultural research and development providers.

2001: Opening of new glasshouse at the University’s Cradle Coast campus.

2007: TIA acquired the Elliott Dairy Research Facility and Forthside Vegetable Research Facility from the Tasmanian Government, creating new opportunities for research, industry development, training and education.

2010: Implementation of the first Masters coursework program, the Masters of Applied Science (Agriculture and Microbiology).

2011: The institute was renamed as the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA).

2017: A realignment of TIA activities into four centres - ‘Food Safety and Innovation’, ‘Agricultural Systems’, ‘Dairy, Grains and Grazing’, and ‘Horticulture’.

2018: TIA recognised in new university structure as a research institute within the new College of Sciences and Engineering.

2018: Caroline Mohammed becomes the first female professor in agricultural science at the University of Tasmania.

2019: First Tasmanian agricultural science Rhode Scholar was awarded to Oliver Gales.

2023: Bachelor of Agricultural Science expanded to be delivered from Launceston and Hobart.