The Southern Dairy Hub is running a farm systems demonstration at scale, focusing on profitability, animal performance and behaviour, environmental outcomes and feed utilisation.
The Hub now operates two distinct farmlets, allowing for direct comparison of different farming approaches. The focus is on a Standard Herd comparison to a Future Herd. The Standard Herd has a higher stocking rate of 3.1 cow/ha, a stronger focus on profit and herd-based decisions, and closely reflects a ‘typical’ farming system in the southern South Island.
The Future Herd, stocked at 2.5 higher genetic merit cows/ha is made up of the top 29% of animals based on BW from each age group in June 2024. This system is focused on greater individual cow decision making and performance at a lower stocking rate with less supplementary feed, a lower environmental footprint (methane, carbon, nitrate leaching), and emphasis on animal wellbeing (from an already high bar) and cow comfort.
The Hub team are making comparisons across the Standard and Future Herds to contrast the performance of different wintering systems (swedes vs balage and pasture), feeding approaches and systems, with monitoring focusing on impacts on productivity and profitability.
This farmlet system serves as a powerful demonstration tool, enabling farmers to see side-by-side comparisons of different management strategies under similar physical and climatic conditions. The demonstration is comparing wintering on swedes with grass and balage wintering.
Data from the first season has been summarised but not fully interpreted. It is important to note that the farmlets were not implemented until early September, so assumptions have been made for milk production and supplement use splits for each system prior to this. Also, recent changes to the base cow has reduced the average BW of both herds (Table 1), however there is still a 130 BW unit difference between them. Initial results look interesting with the Future farmlet cows producing more milksolids per cow with fewer supplementary feed inputs and more supplement conserved (Table 1). The difference in stocking rate has reduced milksolids production per hectare but not to the same extent that has been observed in previous research at SDH. Financial performance for each system is still being calculated.
Central to the Hub’s demonstration strategy is HubWatch, the regular data and insights program that provides farmers with unprecedented access to ongoing research. General Manager Andrea Dixon and DairyNZ
Senior Scientist Dawn Dalley break down HubWatch – an up-to-date weekly glimpse into demonstration in action, explaining the difference between the Standard and Future Herds and how the data can help decision-making on farm.
This initiative represents a significant evolution in how researchers communicate with farmers. Rather than waiting for multiyear peer-reviewed science, annual reports or conference presentations, HubWatch delivers timely, relevant information that farmers can immediately apply to their own operations. The program demonstrates the Hub’s commitment to transparency and real-time knowledge transfer, making complex data accessible and actionable for busy farmers.
Field days and farm walks provide regular opportunities for farmers to see demonstration in action, ask questions, and understand how findings might apply to their specific situations. These events transform abstract farm data into practical insights that farmers can immediately implement.
As the dairy industry faces increasing pressure to demonstrate environmental stewardship while maintaining profitability, the Hub’s demonstration focus becomes increasingly valuable. The Hub serves as a testing ground for innovative approaches that balance productivity and profitability. By operating as both a commercial farm and research and demonstration facility, it provides farmers with confidence that findings from the farm are practically applicable and economically viable.
The southern region’s unique challenges require tailored solutions, and the Hub’s demonstration work increasingly focuses on climate adaptation. Recent research has examined heat stress in Southland cattle, addressing that even southern farms face heat-related challenges. This work, conducted in partnership with DairyNZ, AgResearch, and Fonterra, demonstrates how collaborative research can address emerging regional challenges.
“The Hub is perfectly positioned to be ahead of the game so farmers can move more quickly with great information and data,” Dixon says.
In an industry where timing and precision matter enormously, the Hub’s demonstration activities provide farmers with the knowledge and confidence to implement changes effectively, she says.
Dixon emphasises the importance of building visibility of the Hub to farmers so they understand the value they can get from the research, reflecting a strategic shift towards making research more accessible and practically applicable.
The facility’s collaborative ownership structure, bringing together southern farmers, AgResearch and DairyNZ, ensures that demonstration activities remain closely aligned with industry needs while maintaining scientific rigor. This unique model creates a bridge between the research community and farming practice that benefits the entire industry.
As challenges facing dairy farming continue to evolve, the Hub’s demonstration focus provides a model for how research institutions can remain relevant and valuable to the farmers they serve. Through HubWatch, field days, demonstration and ongoing trials, the Hub transforms complex research into practical wisdom that farmers can trust and implement with confidence.
To sign up to HubWatch and keep track of the results, visit southerndairyhub.co.nz/hubwatch
