Government announces this year's Partnerships Scheme Investment Round recipients

DairyNZ has secured Government funding to reduce industry wide greenhouse gas emissions. Photo / File

DairyNZ has secured $8.4 million in funding from the Government over the next seven years to develop genetically low nitrogen excreting animals and farm management strategies to reduce greenhouse gases.

Dr Bruce Thorrold, strategy and investment leader for productivity at DairyNZ, said the funding would enable the dairy industry to lower its environmental footprint - potentially by up to 20 per cent.

"We've got a lot of significant challenges that we want to address which require research to develop new options for farmers and this sort of partnership is a really good way to achieve those gains," Thorrold said.

"In the first instance we have to test whether or not animals that are physically different in terms of nitrogen efficiencies, whether that is genetically controlled, and if it is then we can breed for it."

The industry would know within two or three years whether it would be possible or not, he said.

A further $11.5m funding would be invested by dairy farmers through the levy they pay to DairyNZ, with additional funding support to make up $21 million coming from CRV Ambreed and Fonterra, Thorrold said.

Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods today announced the recipients of this year's Partnerships Scheme Investment Round.

Other recipients include Kiwifruit Cultivar Research Consortium who will receive $6.73m over the next seven years to develop technology to efficiently screen and cull elite kiwifruit seedling populations and develop a new variety of kiwifruit.

The University of Canterbury secured $5m over the next seven years to transform the building and construction industry, to lead the world in digital design and construction methods.

Woods said the Government was committed to raise New Zealand's R&D expenditure to two per cent of GDP over the next 10 years, awarding a total of $25.7m to innovative technology projects.

"The Partnerships Scheme strengthens ties between research organisations and research users, particularly industries, by supporting them to establish long-term research programmes," she said.

"Partnership members determine the research they will undertake, so the research is driven by an industry or sector's needs."

Beef + Lamb New Zealand secured $3.15m in funding and the New Zealand Leather and Shoe Research Association secured $2.4m over the next six years.