The Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) is set to hold a major dairy open day at its Hillsborough research site later this year.
The open day will be run in partnership with AgriSearch and the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) and will feature current research work at AFBI in support of the dairy sector.
This will provide the opportunity to view the latest research and also to discuss how AFBI scientists are using the latest technologies to find new ways of optimising farming practices.
Key aspects which will be highlighted include:
- The latest research on soil and fertiliser management and grass varieties to maximise grass production;
- Strategies to optimise the utilisation of grass within environmental sustainable production systems;
- Opportunities to achieve efficiencies at each step of the dairy production cycle, from birth onwards.
Preparing for market uncertainties
Dr. Sinclair Mayne, AFBI chief executive, said: “Given current and future market uncertainties, AFBI’s research is addressing new opportunities to control production costs, increase production efficiency and thereby enhance the competitiveness of the dairy sector in Northern Ireland.
“This open day is an important part of our strategy of engaging directly with farmers and the industry to ensure that the industry gains maximum benefit from our research, and will be held in conjunction with our partners in AgriSearch, Queen’s University and CAFRE.”
This year’s open day will also feature a ‘research village’ with demonstrations on topics such as:
- Animal health and welfare;
- Forage management;
- Enhancing food quality;
- Precision farming;
- Managing nutrient losses.
This will include a demonstration of slurry separation at the newly-built Nutrient Management Centre.