Leo Vollebregt wanted a thriving dairy farm, but faced challenges with staff retention and cow health. Then, he had an insight during a 2007 trip to Canterbury.

Earthquakes can lead to significant disruption and damage on dairy farms. This page provides information to help you manage the aftermath of an earthquake on your farm.

Building and running a dairy is a significant investment. Having the most updated technologies and systems can have a positive and major impact on milking efficiency and the comfort of cows and milkers.

Foot and mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral disease affecting cloven-hoofed animals, posing a significant threat to New Zealand's economy and agricultural sector.

Recycling, collection and safe disposal services are a responsible way to deal with farm waste, reducing the negative effects on the environment and the health risks for both people and animals.

Postgraduate student research projects focus on making farms more efficient and sustainable while improving animal welfare. These scholarships enable recipients to focus on their studies and foster professional connections within the sector.

The DairyNZ-led FRNL programme – a cross-sector approach (2013-2019) provided new scientific knowledge, tools and technologies for forage production that can amount to more than 20% reduction of nitrate leaching from dairy farms.

Grant and Jan Early are dairy farmers from Mayfield. The dairy farm has an effective milking platform area of 375 ha.

Adverse weather events are becoming more common and can significantly impact dairy farm operations. Dairy farmers must have a plan to look after their people, animals, business and pastures to minimise the impact and ensure a quick recovery.

The Rathgen family run a mixed dairy and arable farm system in St Andrews.

Heavy snow affects both the physical and emotional well-being of farming families and staff.

Power outages on NZ dairy farms can lead to significant disruptions, affecting daily activities such as providing water to animals, keeping lights on, milking, and maintaining proper heating and cooling.

Dairy stockmanship covers interactions between cows and people, and when practised effectively, creates a safe and efficient work environment; it also improves animal health and production.

How do we reduce methane emissions from cattle within our pasture-based farming system? And when will farmers have solutions ready to use on-farm?

The purpose of a catch crop is to increase annual dry matter production, to take up soil mineral and urine nitrogen and to reduce the risk of leaching or runoff.

Crunching the numbers before spending money is critical. Use the Investment Calculator to work out what it might cost and what your return could be.

Carrying out a ‘bucket test’ will help determine the application depth, rate and how uniformly water is being applied during an irrigation event.

Download this handy tool to take the guesswork out of determining your effluent nutrient loadings.