Pierre Beukes

Pierre has more than 25 years of research experience. He brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise as one of DairyNZ’s farm system modellers. Specialising in farm systems insights, he works closely with farmers to address their questions, using modelling to find answers and then testing these solutions in real-life farm settings.

Over the years, Pierre’s primary focus has been on reducing nitrate leaching and mitigating greenhouse gas emissions through modelling and trialling dairy farming systems that increase production and reduce environmental footprint.

One of his favourite projects was the Pastoral 21 initiative, which ran from 2011-2016 across three regions, Waikato, Canterbury and South Otago. This project involved modelling farms to reduce nitrogen leaching while maintaining profitability. The project successfully demonstrated the close alignment between model predictions and real-life outcomes.

Pierre’s greatest achievement is starting a new career after 15 years in his first discipline becoming an expert in dairy farm systems and modelling. Pierre started his career in South Africa, studying natural rangelands that provide food for wild herbivores. His background in ecology and nature conservation has been crucial in his transition to dairy science at DairyNZ, where he utilises these skills to understand the interactions between cows and pastures.

Pierre says that his “top accolade is receiving calls from farmers requesting papers, as this is a testament to the practical impact of my work.”

Pierre has a Bachelor in Agricultural Science from University of Stellenbosch, with honours in Nature Conservation. He has completed a Master of Science in Nature Conservation focusing on the ecology of the Grey Rhebuck (Pelea capreolus) antelope in a South African reserve. He holds a PhD from the University of Cape Town in Rangeland Science.