About us

The peak body for farming in the ACT

ACT Farmers — the ACT Rural Landholders' Association of Farmers — represents the people who farm the Territory's rural lands. Our members are the current custodians of around 15 per cent of the ACT: more than 160 landholdings producing food and fibre and managing the land, water and native vegetation that surround the national capital.

Almost everything grown in the ACT is grown on leased land. Unlike farmers in every other state and territory, ACT farmers hold their properties under Territory rural leases rather than freehold. That single fact shapes most of what we do. It is why the association exists, and why a strong, united voice for rural leaseholders matters as much today as it did a century ago.

What we do

We advocate for farmers and for best-practice farming. That means representing members to the ACT Government and the Legislative Assembly, making submissions on planning, leasing, environment and water policy, and sitting at the table when decisions are made about rural land.

We work to improve the fairness, efficiency and diversity of the ACT's rural lease and licence system, so that farming businesses can plan, invest and pass properties on with confidence.

We raise community awareness of farming in the Territory. Most Canberrans live within a short drive of a working farm, but few know what happens there. We want the city to understand and value the farms on its doorstep.

We help conserve the cultural landscape of the national capital. The open rural land that frames Canberra was farmed before the city was built, and it is farming families who keep it open, productive and cared for.

We work with partners including Landcare ACT, the three ACT catchment groups (Ginninderra, Molonglo and Southern ACT) and Regional Development Australia. The association is a member of the Landcare community, and our members are active in restoring Box Gum woodland, managing weeds and pests, and building drought and fire resilience on their properties.

Our history

Our story begins with the city itself. In 1911, when the Commonwealth moved to acquire all the land for the proposed federal capital, local farmers formed the Vigilance Association to protect their interests. A Lessees' Association followed in 1919 but did not last. On 28 January 1926 the Rural Lessees' Association was formed — its first meeting was pushed back to 11 February because members were out fighting bushfires — and it has represented ACT farmers continuously ever since.

For most of the twentieth century Territory farmers worked under short, insecure leases that could be resumed by the government at little notice; some were renewed as often as every three months. The association's defining achievement came in the 1990s, when it led negotiations with the ACT Government under Chief Minister Kate Carnell that resulted in 99-year lease tenure for rural land. The first 99-year leases were granted in 2000, and the association changed its name to the ACT Rural Landholders' Association to reflect the greater security and respect its members' land title had finally earned.

In September 2026 we marked our centenary with a dinner at Old Parliament House, celebrating 100 years of ACT farming advocacy and the families who have carried it.

How we work

ACT Farmers is run by its members. An executive of four elected office holders — President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer — is supported by a committee of up to eleven further elected members. The committee meets around eight times a year.

Members come together for general meetings each quarter (usually March, June, September and December), with the Annual General Meeting held in September. Before each meeting the President circulates an agenda with reports on the association's activities and the Treasurer's quarterly financial statement, so members always know what is being done in their name. Alongside the business, we hold social and educational events on members' farms and at venues around the Territory — from field days to our Politics in the Paddock forum, where candidates and party leaders answer farmers' questions directly.

Join us

Membership is open to any rural landholder, grazing licensee or farm manager in the ACT region. Family members, former farmers and friends of ACT farming are welcome as associate members and Friends of ACT Farmers. Joining gives you a say in the issues that affect your farm, regular updates on what is happening in rural policy, and the company of people who understand the work.