July 6 - 12, 2022
Award winning researcher By GRAHAM CLEMENTS
BEECHWORTH’S Adrian Spencer has spent his lifetime turning curiosity into accessible information for others, resulting in him recently winning AgriFuture Australia’s 2022 Researcher of the Year. The award is for a research project undertaken in an emerging industry area that helps Australian growers tap into and advance their markets. Adrian’s research is on seaweed and algae and how it could be used in the emerging health product market. From a country boy with an interest in gemstones, his life experiences have led him to setting up companies, completing projects for prime ministers, being invited to meetings at the US Senate to discuss collaboration on grants and funding, and attending presidential functions. Adrian’s journey began in Beechworth where he went to school at St Joseph’s and then The Scots School Albury. From Year 10 he had regular holiday work at High Grove Farm in nearby Stanley. While picking berries and working as a farm hand, he began to develop an appreciation for the challenges and potentials in agriculture, which laid the groundwork for his desire to see growers supported better with new markets and opportunities.
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◆ SEAWEED STAR: Award winning researcher Adrian Spencer
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