Help needed for pasture project

DairyNZ is on the hunt for Bay of Plenty farmers to help lead a project aimed at boosting profit through better pasture management.

As part of DairyNZ's Tiller Talk 16-20, farmers from around NZ will be selected to work with agronomists and other farmers to improve their pasture management.

These key farmers will receive advice and share their progress through events and online.

DairyNZ Tiller Talk project leader Elodie Ganche says the project will spotlight one of the biggest influencers of profit.

"This is a real opportunity for those farmers who take part in this project to deepen their knowledge of pasture, gain confidence in their decision-making and consequently improve their bottom line.

"This is about farmer-to-farmer learning. The farmers are the ones who will drive the decisions and identify areas for opportunity. We are after people interested in making better use of pasture, and who like to be challenged by others."

Elodie says Tiller Talk aims to help pasture managers make that next step, where measuring and monitoring pasture is a non-negotiable.

"Regional benchmarking regularly identifies large differences in pasture harvested, even on farms that are close to each other. It's not uncommon for neighbours to differ by 3t DM/ha," says Elodie.

The key farmers will be selected by the end of January. Later in the summer, small groups of participant farmers will join in discussion and follow the progress of the key farms.

- For more information and to register visit dairynz.co.nz/tillertalk.