Media

Approaches to Smart Dairy Farming

The UK team of the Smart Dairy project created three videos that introduce the viewer to three approaches to smart dairy farming: 1) A nature-based approach, which includes elements such as grassland management, the inclusion of herbal leys, the use of trees in silvopastoral systems, and the reduction of artificial fertilisers. These are innovations and management practices which aim to balance out greenhouse gas emissions by improving soil health and increasing carbon sequestration. 2) The second approach, termed technology-based, included heat recovery systems, precision livestock innovations, and genomic selection. These innovations reduce the farm’s carbon footprint through increased input efficiency. 3) The third approach was termed emission-reduction-based and consists of innovations that directly tackle methane or nitrous oxide production at the source of emissions (these have high global warming potential and represent the main environmental concerns within the dairy industry). These innovations include the use of feed additives to reduce enteric methane released when cows burp, methane capture, and the addition of additives to farmyard slurry to minimise nitrous oxide and/or methane emissions. The videos were recorded on the farms of six farmers in the UK.  The visiting team included a professional videographer, a videographer’s assistant, a social scientist, and animal scientists.