Pastoral 21 delivered practical, science-backed strategies to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus losses from commercial dairy farms.
Nitrogen and phosphorus losses from farmland influence water quality. By comparing the performance of a ‘current’ system with a modified ‘future’ system on four farmlets, over the space of five years, the Pastoral 21 research programme developed robust options to reduce these nutrient losses without significantly reducing production or profitability. This information is useful to both farmers and policy-makers. The complex, collaborative study was led from the Waikato, with award nominees representing AgResearch, DairyNZ and Massey University. Research outputs are already being used to refine good practice guidelines and achieve measurable results on the ground. Papers generated by the project have enhanced scientific knowledge of nitrogen and phosphorus management in dairy systems. Development of a sensor to measure the amount and temporal variation of nitrogen loss from cow urine was another benefit of the research.
Pastoral 21 Research Team
DairyNZ & AgResearch
2017 Agricultural Science Award Finalist
Pastoral 21 delivered practical, science-backed strategies to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus losses from commercial dairy farms.
Nitrogen and phosphorus losses from farmland influence water quality. By comparing the performance of a ‘current’ system with a modified ‘future’ system on four farmlets, over the space of five years, the Pastoral 21 research programme developed robust options to reduce these nutrient losses without significantly reducing production or profitability. This information is useful to both farmers and policy-makers. The complex, collaborative study was led from the Waikato, with award nominees representing AgResearch, DairyNZ and Massey University. Research outputs are already being used to refine good practice guidelines and achieve measurable results on the ground. Papers generated by the project have enhanced scientific knowledge of nitrogen and phosphorus management in dairy systems. Development of a sensor to measure the amount and temporal variation of nitrogen loss from cow urine was another benefit of the research.