Use autumn to lift BCS and set your herd up for a stronger season. Hear how smart dry‑off decisions, accurate condition scoring, and targeted feeding can boost performance and production.

A Rotorua dairy farm demonstrates that profitability and environmental performance can go together. Since taking over in 2019/20, Richard and Amy have operated a low-input system designed to meet nitrogen limits while remaining financially strong.

Wearable technologies (such as cow collars) are becoming a popular tool for assisting with reproductive management. In 2025, around 1 in 5 dairy farms are using wearables , mostly to help with heat detection, a factor in getting cows in calf.

The Plantain Evaluation System reviews how effective different plantain cultivars are at reducing nitrate leaching. This system helps you and regulators trust the performance of those cultivars deemed "effective" at this task.

The Emissions and Profitability Project is a study aimed at better understanding the relationships between physical farm performance measures and profitability, with a focus on reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The Resilient Pastures programme is a seven-year initiative focusing on enhancing pasture performance and persistence on dairy, sheep and beef farms across the upper North Island.

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Effectively managing your off-paddock facilities with good practice principles is key to ensuring cow comfort and optimal performance.

The purpose of allocating pasture accurately is to optimise both animal performance and pasture eaten per hectare.

DairyBase is a free tool that helps you make informed decisions by tracking your farm’s physical and financial performance over time.

How do you benchmark your farm systems and performance within the sector? 20 percent of New Zealand farms contribute to DairyBase which offers two types of benchmarking and compares them to industry standards or targets.

Leaders on dairy farms are the people most able to affect outcomes on the farm from team culture through to the farm’s productivity and performance.

A financial performance review will help you identify business issues, risks and opportunities for improvement. Benchmarking will clarify where you are positioned compared to others and help you to make timely operational and strategic decisions.

Dairy operating profit is a crucial indicator of profitability in the dairy sector. Expressed per hectare, per kgMS, or as a percentage of Gross Farm Revenue, it allows farmers to compare their performance with others through benchmarking.

Contract heifer growing involves the collaboration between a dairy farmer and a grazier. This page emphasises the significance of clear communication, mutual benefits, and solid health programmes with steps to develop a contract grazing arrangement.