Community
14 February, 2025
New technology forum for district farmers
DAIRY and beef farmers from Camperdown and district will learn how new cattle grazing and pasture management technologies can revolutionise their businesses at a special free forum on Sunday, February 23.
The event at the Hampden Hotel is being supported by the DemoDAIRY Foundation and will feature several speakers from the inaugural Koroit Agricultural Field Day on February 22 and the Southwest Showcase of Dairy Innovation at Deakin University on February 24.
Presentations will start at 7pm and will cover virtual fencing, as well as effluent and pasture management with time for questions and interaction with the speakers.
Tasmania Institute of Agriculture for the senior researcher Dr Megan Verdon will speak about virtual fencing, an area she has been researching for more than eight years leading to the introduction of virtual fencing in Tasmania in the past two years.
Dr Verdon said momentum for virtual fencing is growing in Victoria but its use is prevented by historic legislation.
Research is underway at the Ellinbank Smart Farm in Gippsland to allow virtual fencing to be introduced in Victoria.
However, she said virtual fencing could be the next revolution in how grazing livestock are managed.
“I believe it can offer significant advantages in terms of our environmental management, animal monitoring, and in people’s lives,” Dr Verdon said.
“But to ensure we achieve all those benefits from the technology, we have to make sure it meets societal perceptions and that it’s used in a way that works with the animal.”
Dr Verdon will also speak about the role cow wearables can play in improving herd health and production.
A senior CropX representative will outline CropX’s effluent irrigation management and monitoring systems developed in partnership with Massey University soil scientists to help farmers to turn cattle and dairy effluent into an asset that fertilizes their pastures and crops while monitoring and minimising runoff and leaching of P and N by scheduling when effluent should be applied, and the nutrients applied.
There will also be a presentation by Wolfie Wagner on PastureSmarts, a web application tool that helps farmers to manage pasture across their properties by centralizing grazing records and estimating current pasture availability.
It can be used on a phone, tablet or home computer.
DemoDAIRY Foundation secretary Ian Teese said the event was an opportunity for farmers east of Terang who couldn’t make it to the Koroit Agricultural Field Day to benefit from the visiting experts.
“DemoDAIRY Foundation is keen to give farmers across our region the opportunity to learn about new technologies that could help in their operations,” he said.
“The night will be of interest to both dairy and beef farmers.”
Counter meals will be available before the speakers commence.
The event is free, but reservations are needed.
People can book at https://events.humanitix.com/host/demodairy-foundation. Space will be limited.
Read More: local, Camperdown