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  1. Current Dairy-Related Projects at Lincoln University
  2. SIDE is supporting with funding the following projects
  3. Current Dairy-Related Projects at Crop & Food Research
  4. Dairy related research funded by Ravensdown/FertResearch
  5. Industry and public good funded research 2005-06

Current dairy related projects at Lincoln University
 
Environment
1. Minimising the environmental impacts of dairy farming.
2. Development and use of ‘eco-n’ nitrification inhibitor technology to reduce nitrate leaching losses.
3. Reducing nitrous oxide emissions from pastoral agriculture using nitrification inhibitors.
4. Determination of nitrous oxide emission factor from animal excreta.
5. Greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture.
6. Linking trade and environment: greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture.
7. World trade and the environment.
8. Comparison between organic, low input and conventional dairy – the environmental, economic and social indicators.
9. Dairy farmers’ waterway aesthetics.
10. Improving water use efficiency on irrigated dairy farms.
Farm Productivity
1. Pasture legume agronomy and management.
2. Pasture grass endophyte evaluation
3. Forest to pasture conversion
4. Modelling growth and quality of forage crops.
5. Water use efficiency in grasses and legumes
6. Dairy systems models.
7. A survey of South Island dairy farmers’ use of run-off properties and strategies to improve profitability.
Farm Business
1. Employment in dairying: a case study of Amuri 1983-2001.
2. Future dairy farm employment.
3. Economic aspects of changing seasonality of milk production in NZ.
4. Techniques for optimization of a dairy farm simulation model.
Animal Health and Welfare
1. Role of bovine MHC genes in mastitis resistance.
2. Neural networks (application to detecting mastitis in cows).
3. Magnesium metabolism – a simulation model.
4. Farm management strategies and implications for farmers to a nil induction policy.
5. Monitoring Climate Stress in Canterbury Dairy Cows.

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SIDE is supporting with funding the following projects:
   
1. “An examination of the costs of the non-induction policy of the LUDF”. Anna Paton
2. “A survey of South Island dairy farmers’ use of run-off properties and strategies to improve profitability”. Brendan Richards.
3. “No Lame Cows Please”. Dexcel Extension Group
4. “Sustainable, Productive Support Land for Dairying”. SIDDC Research Group.
   
The following papers relating to Support Land have been published in The Proceedings of the six annual SI Dairy Events. This demonstrates the importance place on support land related topics by the farmers on the SIDE Committee for the farmer audience. The subject is wide, the number of papers is high, and the topic has featured every year.
   
1. “Run-offs – Control, but at What Cost?” Davis & White. SIDE 2005
2. “The Cost of Wintering in Southland”. Bruce Greig. SIDE 2004
3. “Alternative Crops Suitable for Dairy Land in Southern New Zealand”. Craig Howard. SIDE 2004
4. “Feed Crop Rotations for Supporting a Milking Platform”. Warwick Scott. SIDE 2003.
5. “Brassica Wintering for Dairy Cows: Overcoming the Challenges”. Nichol/Westward/Dumbleton/Amyes. SIDE 2003.
6. “Effective Supplement Use”. Clearwater/Wright. SIDE 2003.
7. “Riparian Management – Benefits to Water Quality”. Maurice Rodway. SIDE 2002.
8. “Innovative and Sustainable Wintering”. Terry Hughes. SIDE 2002.
9. “Future Forages for South Island Dairying”. Hogg/DeRuiter/Hanson. SIDE 2002.
10. “Dairying and the Environment”. Cameron/Di. SIDE 2001.
11. “Environmental Impacts of Wintering Systems”. Bruce Thorrold. SIDE 2000.
12. “Extending Lactation to Increase Milk Solids Per Cow”. John Penno. SIDE 2000.
13. “The Winter – the Alternatives”. Ross Cottier. SIDE 2000.
14. “Optimal Economic Production from Pasture Based Dairying”. Dave Clark. SIDE 1999.
15. “Feeding Supplements to Milkers – South Island Systems and Costs”. McDonald/Allison. SIDE 1999.

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Current dairy related projects at Crop & Food Research

1.  Determine the impacts of dairying on soils (CFR):

  • Define the effects of simulated grazing of cereal forage crops on soil compaction and subsequent effects on forage crop production.

  • Develop and evaluate a Dairy Soil Management System (DSMS) (with AgResearch).

2.  Improve management, production and quality of forage crops for the dairy industry

     (CFR):

  • Develop a tool for forecasting harvest timing of cereal crops.

  • Develop a device for measuring the dry matter content of herbage for on-farm use.

  • Develop a database of supplementary feeds for optimising feed systems and facilitating use of dairy feed composition in feed budgeting.

3.  Develop new cereal and brassica forage cultivars for the dairy industry (CFR):

  • Produce single and multi-graze cereal and brassica forage cultivars for improved productivity and quality. 

4.  Develop new opportunities for using genetic engineering and molecular mapping

     technology for new dairy products and forage cultivars with improved quality (CFR).

 

5.  Develop supplementary forage crop feeding systems for the West Coast (MAF-SFF,

     Westland Milk Products, Industry):

  • Address the mis-match between the patterns of demand for feed and of pasture production and quality during the season.

  • Produce a “menu” of options to fit into West Coast farming systems, including cereals, brassicas and maize.

  • Focus on crop management to minimise risks and maximise production, with particular emphasis on N and K nutrition.

6.  Develop ways to schedule whole farm system forage supply to meet demands during

     periods of feed shortage in the Culverden basin (MAF-SFF, Culverden farmers):

  • Address issues including low summer production and reduced pasture quality, winter feed deficits, supplementary feed requirements to offset slow spring growth, and autumn feed shortage causing early dry off.

  • Define how changes will affect labour requirements, whole farm economics, capital investment, down time for land reallocation, re-grassing, animal production, animal reproduction, and animal condition.

7.  Develop feeds for dairy animals to meet nutritional requirements for peak production

     using genetic and crop management methods for controlling leaf and stem quality and 

     partitioning of reserves (PGSF):

  • Determine the response of rape stem and leaf biomass to row spacing and sowing rate and plant population effects on rape and kale.

  • Define the variability of herbage quality (carbohydrate levels and metabolisable energy) of supplementary feeds (cereals, legumes) used on dairy farms in the South Island, and predict the levels of supplementary feed required to achieve milk production targets.

8.  Develop management systems for improved productivity and quality of new releases of   

     cereal forage cultivars (Industry).

  • Breed new cereal cultivars for silage production.

  • Release crop production management packages for the new cultivars.

  • Develop tools for predicting harvest dates.

9.  Agronomy of Lotus and Sulla as forage options for dairying (with Dexcel).

  • Develop management and harvesting strategies to improve productivity and persistence of Lotus and Sulla.

10. Management and forecasting systems for forage brassicas (PGSF, Industry).

  • Develop yield physiology models for forage brassica crops.

  • Develop management strategies and decision support tools for improved productivity and reliability of the diverse range of summer and winter forage brassicas.

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Dairy related research funded by Ravensdown / FertResearch

 

1.  Eco-n: the effect of a nitrification inhibitor on nitrate and cation leaching, N2O emissions,

     pasture production and quality.

  • Lincoln – lysimeters, field plot and grazing studies

  • Massey – grazing study

  • Dexcel (Waikato) – lysimeters, grazing study

  • West Coast - in association with Landcorp

2.  Organic dairying

    Funding support for the Massey University comparison of conventional vs organic dairy

    systems.

 

3.  Slow release Se prills

     Evaluation of Selprill Double under dairy grazing at Flock House.

 

4.  Fertiliser requirements for flipped soils

     In conjunction with Landcorp on the West Coast.

 

5.  Environmental and economic performance of dairy catchments

     Co-funding with dairy insight and others.

 

6.  Effect of stocking rate on the sustainability of Taranaki soils

     Co-funding with TRC and others.

 

7.  Effects of pastoral agriculture on water quality of Lake Rerewhakaaitu

     Co-funding of SFF project.

 

8.  Evaluation and adoption of best nutrient management practice for dairy farms

     Co-funding of SFF project.

 

9.  Nutrient trading and capping

     An NZCPA study by an honours student.

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Industry and public good funded research 2005-06

 Titles of Dairy InSight funded research projects:

 

 1.     Modelling farm and industry production and profitability (led by Pierre Beukes)

2.      Pregnancy Enhancement (led by Susanne Meier)

3.      Mastitis Epidemiology and Alternative Control Strategies (led by Jane Lacy-Hulbert)

4.      Forage Mixed Rations for increased profitability (led by Sharon Woodward)

5.      Transition Cow Nutrition (led by John Roche)

6.      Enhanced Ovarian Function (led by Lucia Chagas)

7.      Extending lactation for 670 days (led by Eric Kolver)

8.     Mechanisms of body tissue mobilization and deposition in high genetic merit dairy cows (led     by John Roche)

9.     Once a day milking for lifestyle and profit (led by Dave Clark)

10.    Reproductive solutions for future farming scenarios/ Automated Oestrous Detection (led by Chris Burke)

11.    Ensuring productive and profitable cow genotypes (led by Kevin Macdonald)

12.    Pasture cover via satellite (led by Sue Petch)

13.    Overseer: Nitrification Inhibitors (led by Bruce Thorrold)

14.    Advanced Supplementary Decision Rules (led by Eric Kolver)

15.    Automated Technologies for on-farm management of dairy herds –

         early detection and body condition score (led by Jenny Jago)

16.    Prototype Farms (led by Bruce Thorrold)

17.    The impact of novel ryegrass endophyte AR37 on dairy production (led by Errol Thom)

18.    Northland Project: mastitis control and productivity (led by Jane Lacy-Hulbert)

Titles of FRST-funded research projects:

 

 

19.  Innovative food harvesting and monitoring technologies (led by Murray Woolford)

20.   Protecting people through product purity (led by Jane Lacy-Hulbert)

21.   Sustainable Dairying (led by Dave Clark) 

Titles of SFF-funded research projects:

 22.   Sustainable intensification of Waikato Dairy Farms (led by Bruce Thorrold)     

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Current dairy related projects at LIC

1.    Genomic selection (partially funded by Technology New Zealand)

2.    Transcriptome Mapping for milk production (Partially funded by TechNZ)

3.    BoviQuest, joint research effort with ViaLactia on milk production and composition.

4.    Feed Conversion Efficiency, in collaboration with Dexcel [NZ], Dairy-CRC and DPI-Victoria  [Australia], and partially funded by NZTE.

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