DairyCo

DairyCo commits £5m over 5 years to dairy R&D

Published 27 June 11

DairyCo has committed £5 million to be spent over the next five years on two new Research Partnerships which will deliver practical research to British dairy farmers.

The ambitious plan of research and development will be conducted by a consortium of partners across Britain.  The research will focus on two main areas: The first, Soil, Forage and Grassland, will be led by the Scottish Agricultural College (partnering Harper Adams University College and Reading University).  The second, Health, Welfare and Nutrition, will be led by the University of Nottingham (partnering Harper Adams University College, Royal Veterinary College, Bristol University, Scottish Agricultural College, and University of Aberystwyth (IBERS)).  

The results of the research will feed directly into DairyCo's own technical guides and knowledge transfer activities, as well as being promoted for wider use by other industry stakeholders. 

"We recognise the importance of continuing technical development to maintaining an efficient, globally competitive and consumer-friendly dairy industry," says Ray Keatinge, head of research and development at DairyCo.

"The partnership approach will not only provide new information for dairy farmers, but will help build the UK industry's capacity to deliver more of this type of research in the future."

"By developing this kind of relationship with leading institutes we can access a wider range of expertise, much of it of international standing," explains Mr Keatinge. "By investing DairyCo funding into new and existing research programmes the aim is to maximise the value of our spend, and open up opportunities for the researchers to access further funding from the UK Research Councils."

Dairy farmer Kevin Beaty, chair of the DairyCo Research Advisory Forum says: "The partnership approach delivers great value to the levy payer.  What's more, through this forum, farmers have been involved in identifying and recommending the research priorities, so we can be confident the research fits with what is needed on-farm."

Dr Celia Caulcott, director for innovation and skills, at the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, said: "The dairy sector is a vital part of the food chain and I fully support this innovative approach DairyCo has taken to engage the UK's world-leading research base in generating new knowledge, expertise and advice for farmers. Increased global demand for dairy products is forecast to be a contributing factor in future food insecurity. The research being supported will contribute to the aim we are all working towards - sustainably produced, high quality and affordable food for everyone."

Ends

27 June 2011

Editor's Notes

The first partnership on Soil, Forage and Grassland will be led by the Scottish Agricultural College, partnering Harper Adams University College and Reading University.  They will also be supported by NIAB, Teagasc (Moorepark), BGS and AFBI (Hillsborough). This group will focus on soil management, use of slurry and AD digestate during the grazing season, soil compaction and aeration, approaches to grass varietal selection, precision farming grassland, out-wintering systems, more accurate determination of feeding value for high clover silages, well as management and nutritional impacts of maize, lucerne, and whole crop legumes.

The second partnership, on Health Welfare and Nutrition, will be led by the University of Nottingham, leading a consortium of partners which includes Harper Adams University College, Royal Veterinary College, Bristol University, Scottish Agricultural College, and University of Aberystwyth (IBERS).  This Partnership will target research on improved diet formulation, trace element supplementation, rumen health, dietary protein levels, and grazing management for high yielding cows. On health and welfare, new information will be provided on lameness, mastitis, Johne's disease, guidance on biosecurity and vaccination strategies, best practice for heifer rearing, cow welfare assessment, as well as new industry data on the incidence and prevalence of the major diseases affecting dairy cattle.

Both partnerships will train a total of 12 new PhD students, a proportion of which it is hoped will continue their careers in applied dairy research.

N:        Helen Fina
T:         024 7647 8696
E:         helen.fina@dairyco.ahdb.org.uk
W:        www.dairyco.org.uk

DairyCo's aim is to promote world class knowledge to British dairy farmers so they can profit from a sustainable future.

To achieve this DairyCo aims to:

• Ensure farmers have access to world class information needed to improve competitiveness, GHG reduction and productivity
• Ensure farmers have access to direct and indirect support to help them improve their profitability through better business management
• Ensure that dairy farming is reducing its impact on the environment
• Ensure farmers understand the benefits of breeding and use the related tools

DairyCo is funded entirely by milk producers, via a statutory levy on all milk sold off-farm, at the rate of 0.06p per litre.  This provides an annual income of around £6.5m.

DairyCo is a division of the statutory levy board, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB).