Researchers and farmers working together
Partner Farmers are commercial
dairy farmers that work closely with the FutureDairy
team.
They operate in partnership with our research staff at
the Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute (EMAI)
at Camden, NSW.
The role of Partner Farms is to provide a site for the exploration of whole system, labour and lifestyle implications of technologies under analysis. Currently we have two partner farms, one in SA and one in Gippsland, along with a case study farm in Northern NSW.
Industry benefits
By testing our ideas through research trials and Partner Farms at the same time we can fast-track the research and extension process. Partner farms serve as a hub for innovation, within lessons learnt supporting the development of regional management guidelines and extension strategies. Along with this, partner farm activities, which involve other local farmers and advisors, generate new and relevant research questions which our team is well placed to address quickly. The end result should be that dairy farmers are provided with new technologies and practices sooner, and with confidence that they are relevant for their region.
Who are they?
Our current partner farmers are Bill and Alison Jessep (click for link to profile), from Maffra in East Gippsland, and Steve and Darren Berkefeld (click for link to profile) from Mt Gambier, Sth Australia. Along with this we also have a case study farm in NSW (Wayne Clark's property is situated on the far North Coast of NSW).
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