PODCAST: Food security, biosecurity and national resilience with Andrew Henderson, director of Agsecure

Joint-capabilities
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By: Robyn Tongol

In this episode of the Defence Connect Podcast, managing editor Steve Kuper speaks with Andrew Henderson, director of Agsecure and a leading voice on agricultural resilience, biosecurity, and national preparedness.

In this episode of the Defence Connect Podcast, managing editor Steve Kuper speaks with Andrew Henderson, director of Agsecure and a leading voice on agricultural resilience, biosecurity, and national preparedness.

Together, they explore the recently released National Food Security Strategy discussion paper, the importance of critical inputs like fuel and fertiliser, the implications of trade disputes, and the growing need to integrate food systems into defence planning.

The pair also discuss why food security is no longer just an agricultural issue – it’s a national security imperative. With global supply chains under pressure, climate risks mounting, and adversaries willing to target agricultural systems through biosecurity breaches or even agroterrorism, Australia faces a complex challenge in safeguarding the nation’s food and fibre production.

From the risks of varroa mite and foot and mouth disease to the opportunities of regional self-reliance and biotechnology, Henderson outlines why food security must be elevated to the same level of priority as Australia’s defence posture – and why a secure Indo-Pacific is, ultimately, a well-fed one.

Enjoy the podcast,
The Defence Connect team

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Listen to previous episodes of the Defence Connect podcast:

Episode 11: THE PROGRESS REPORT: Direct hit over Baghdad – the pilot who outflew a surface-to-air missile
Episode 10: SPOTLIGHT: Subs may be the centrepiece – but infrastructure, workforce and sovereign capability will decide the outcome, with Stantec Australia’s Chris Waywell, Rob Sansbury and Robert Fogel
Episode 9: CONTESTED GROUND: Apathy, complacency and the ‘Lucky Country’, Australia’s predicament is entirely self-inflicted, with Ben Dullroy
Episode 8: SPECIAL EDITION PODCAST: 125 years of the Royal Australian Navy and Australian Army
Episode 7: CONTESTED GROUND: Australian resilience during a crisis and sovereign industrial capability
Episode 6: CONTESTED GROUND: From Tehran to Sydney – why war could reshape Australian property
Episode 5: SPOTLIGHT: Inside Australia’s AUKUS industrial transformation, with Honeywell Aerospace Australia senior director Lee Davis
Episode 4: CONTESTED GROUND: War without borders – the disinformation threat arriving in Australia
Episode 3: THE PROGRESS REPORT: The mission to make military children visible
Episode 2: PODCAST: Righting the ship, balancing the force, with Senator James Paterson, shadow minister for defence