NAB is the most trusted agribusiness bank among farmers, followed by Rural Bank and Rabobank
A special Roy Morgan Agribusiness Brand Trust Survey of Australian farmers measured trust and distrust in Australia’s agricultural sector. The most trusted agribusiness bank by Australian farmers in 2022 is NAB followed by Rural Bank and Rabobank, leading other brands in the banking sector.
The results in the recent Roy Morgan Farmer Agribusiness Brand Trust Survey Report are based on detailed interviews with 1,230 Australian farmers conducted during June and July 2022.
NAB has emerged as the most trusted bank in the agribusiness sector with farmers commending NAB for maintaining good relationships with farmers, for their reliability, good service and high standards.
In their own words, farmers described their longstanding relationships with NAB and the bank’s agribusiness managers: ‘Have dealt with them for years and have on the whole developed a good relationship’, ‘Our family banker for 80 years’, ‘This bank worked with us when we initially bought our first farm. Our agribusiness managers through the years have been great to deal with and very supportive.’
Farmers also trusted Rural Bank and Rabobank for their commitment to customer relationships, as well as their good service and reliability.
Rural Bank
- ‘They are 100% focused on agribusiness’
- ‘We had a strong relationship with our bank manager, who was always there to assist us. We valued his help in refinancing’
- ‘Well trained staff, excellent service and support’
- ‘Our family has dealt with them since day one. Never been let down by them. Very honest people’
Rabobank
- ‘They act like a partner, if it’s to our advantage then it is to their advantage. The manager has a true understanding of our business. They are there to help, not just take our money’
- ‘Open and transparent in discussions about finance’
- ‘Very supportive during hard times’
- ‘Good relationship with them, seem to have farmers interests at core of business’
- ‘They seem genuine in understanding agriculture and not just in for the cash like other banks’
Trust by farm location and type
Trust towards individual agribusiness banks varied by farmer demographics, with Rural Bank and Rabobank receiving high trust scores among Victorian farmers, while ANZ was most trusted in South Australia.
Dairy farmers were more trusting of agribusiness banks overall, with all six banks measured in the survey recording higher Net Trust Scores among this group of farmers. Rural Bank and Rabobank were more trusted among wool farmers.
Differences were also evident by farm size and revenue.
Farmer trust in agribusiness banks is driven by customer relationships, familiarity, good service, and good staff.
The most common reasons for farmers trusting banks included customer relationships, being established, well-known and familiar, good service and experiences with the brand and good staff who are friendly, helpful and knowledgeable.
NAB was seen as providing more advice and support to farmers in times of need compared to the other banks.
More than half of farmers agreed that NAB provided advice and support to them in times need, including during natural disasters such as fires and floods. This was significantly higher than other banks. Some examples, in their own words, of how banks have been supportive to farmers include:
- ‘This bank worked with us when we initially bought our first farm. Our agribusiness managers through the years have been great to deal with and very supportive’
- ‘They provided financial assistance to us during the pandemic’
- ‘We have banked with them for a long time, and they have been there when we needed them’
- ‘Been with them my whole life, always been helpful when I needed assistance with anything’
Value for money and competent staff are the most important attributes for farmers when deciding which agribusiness brands to deal with.
More than 94% of farmers thought that value for money and competent staff were important attributes when choosing an agribusiness brand.
There were some clear differences in the importance of attributes between farm size and revenue. Farmers with revenue of less than $100,000 per annum, and farmers on less than 500 hectares thought being Australian owned was more important than farmers overall, while those with an annual revenue of more than $1 million, and farmers on more than 1,000 hectares thought having competent staff was more important than farmers in general.
Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine credits brands such as NAB for driving a high Net Trust Score within the bank agribusiness industry although there are laggards dealing with distrust:
“The Roy Morgan Farmer Agribusiness Brand Trust Survey shows the sector as a whole enjoys a high level of trust among Australian farmers and this is no different for the agribusiness banks – farmers rely heavily on the agribusiness industry to support their businesses and way of life.
“NAB is the most trusted agribusiness bank followed by Rural Bank and Rabobank.
“It is no co-incidence that NAB is also the bank farmers would be most likely to consider using in the future.
“The research also identified opportunities for banks to develop relationships with farmers, with more than half of farmers not currently dealing with banks they trust.
“However, there are some exceptions to the generally high trust seen in the sector with distrust in agribusiness banks driven by poor experiences and a perception that banks are too profit driven. Farmers who distrusted a bank are far less likely to use that bank or consider using it in the future.
“Roy Morgan’s research shows that whilst key drivers of trust differ across industries and brands it is the cornerstone of building a sustainable future for a business. Trust builds human connections with business, underpins brand reputation and creates customer loyalty. Trust promotes customer advocacy and referrals, drives revenue growth and increases market capitalisation.
“At the other end of the spectrum distrust is one of the most significant, yet least recognised risks to Australian business and society in general. Distrust kills engagement, is the tipping point for reputational damage and directly impacts commercial and economic outcomes. Distrust is the bellwether for an unsustainable future.”
For more details on trust and distrust in the Agribusiness industry, you can purchase our Roy Morgan Agribusiness Brand Trust Report here.
In July 2022, 1,230 Australian farmers completed Roy Morgan’s Farmer Agribusiness Brand Trust 2022 survey, providing insight into farmers’ perceptions of, and experiences with key agribusiness brands including trust and distrust. Farmers from a range of farms participated in the survey – Beef, Cropping, Sheep (meat), Sheep (wool), Horticulture, Dairy and other farm types, small farms to those over 25,000 hectares, annual revenue from under $100,000 to over $5 million.
The Farmer Agribusiness Brand Trust Report 2022 details insights into farmer perceptions of key agribusiness brands including:
- Net Trust/Distrust Scores and rankings of around 60 agribusiness brands*
- Which agribusiness brands farmers trust and distrust
- Why farmers trust and distrust these brands
- What factors have the strongest influence on farmer trust in agribusiness brands
- Which brands farmers have used, and would consider using
- Which recent events have impacted farmers
- What the biggest challenges are for farmers currently
- Analysis overall, as well as by farm type, size, revenue and state.
The report includes an Executive Summary, charts, tables and commentary summarising key findings, with examples of reasons farmers trust and distrust specific brands, and their biggest challenges – in their own words.
Agribusiness Brands, Products and Suppliers included (number of verbatim comments on reasons for trust or distrust): 4Farmers (11), AACo (64), Adama (65), Ag n Vet (57), AG Warehouse (23), AIRR (64), ANZ (223), Australian Wool Network/AWN (58), AWB (56), Baristoc (86), BASF (37), Bayer (129), CBH Group (57), Commonwealth Bank (557), Coopers (16), Corteva (39), CropSmart (20), CRT (115), CSBP (14), Dairy Australia (69), Dairy Farmers Group (58), Delta Agribusiness (15), EPG Seeds (5), Elders (1219), FMC (28), Fonterra (107), Gallagher (10), Graincorp (70), Incitec Pivot (132), Inghams (96), John Deere (26), Kenso (47), Landmark (35), Meat and Livestock Australia (74), Megafert (34), Monsanto (183), NAB (60), Norco (105), NRI (16), Nufarm (133), Nutrien (417), Ozcrop (52), Pacific Seeds (28), Pastoral Ag (19), Rabobank (107), Ridley (32), Rural Bank (69), Sipcam (41), Summit Fertilisers (33), Superfert (26), Syngenta (84), Titan Ag (31), UPL (57), Waratah (13), Wesfarmers (87), Westpac (568), Yarra International (19), Zoetis (19).
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Margin of Error
The margin of error to be allowed for in any estimate depends mainly on the number of interviews on which it is based. Margin of error gives indications of the likely range within which estimates would be 95% likely to fall, expressed as the number of percentage points above or below the actual estimate. Allowance for design effects (such as stratification and weighting) should be made as appropriate.
| Sample Size | Percentage Estimate |
| 40% – 60% | 25% or 75% | 10% or 90% | 5% or 95% | |
| 1,000 | ±3.0 | ±2.7 | ±1.9 | ±1.3 |
| 5,000 | ±1.4 | ±1.2 | ±0.8 | ±0.6 |
| 7,500 | ±1.1 | ±1.0 | ±0.7 | ±0.5 |
| 10,000 | ±1.0 | ±0.9 | ±0.6 | ±0.4 |
| 20,000 | ±0.7 | ±0.6 | ±0.4 | ±0.3 |
| 50,000 | ±0.4 | ±0.4 | ±0.3 | ±0.2 |
