Dairy Roadshow - Wiltshire

Join us at Pomeroy Farm, Wiltshire for our second Dairy Roadshow. You will meet with industry experts who will be sharing their findings from our five-year research partnership led by the University of Nottingham. You will hear key findings from some of the studies and how they can be put into practice on farm.

During the day you will move through five themed interactive stations covering cow environment, feed efficiency, nutrition, Johne's disease and mastitis. There will also be plenty of opportunity to ask questions and discuss the topics with the researchers and fellow attendees over lunch.

Station 1: Cow Environment

How could your dairy cows benefit from providing more living space? With Jake Thompson, PhD Researcher, University of Nottingham

You will hear about:

• The definition of living space
• How living space can impact dairy cow production, reproduction and behaviour

Station 2: Whole Farm Feed Efficiency

What impacts your Dairy Farm Efficiency with Professor Phil Garnsworthy

You will hear about:

• Definition of Whole Farm Feed Efficiency (WFFE)
• How to calculate WFFE for your farm
• How to improve WFFE

Station 3: Nutrition

Feed low protein diets based on high protein forages without affecting performance with Professor Liam Sinclair, Harper Adams University

You will hear about:

• Reducing the protein content of diets based on high protein, home-grown forages such as red clover and lucerne
• The effects on animal performance, nitrogen excretion and purchased feed costs

Station 4: Johnes Disease

with Steven Van Winden from the Royal Veterinary College

Station 5: Mastitis

Mastitis Pattern Analysis Tool with James Breen from University of Nottingham

You will hear about:

• How and when infections can be picked up
• How a better understanding of your herd mastitis pattern can allow you to focus on control measures
• An introduction to the Mastitis Patter Analysis tool - a simple and automated way of finding out where most infections are happening on your farm

About Pomeroy Farm 

Pomeroy farm is family run, farming about 344 hectares (850 acres). Herd is made up of 700 dairy cows (averaging 9,000L), plus followers. 280 of the followers are reared offsite by a local heifer contract rearer. Cows are all-year-round calving and milked twice a day through a 50 point rotary parlour. Grazing and TMR feeding are both core to the system. The TMR ration includes grass and maize silages, with wheat and rapemeal being the key. There is a strong focus on genetic gain and a constant focus on improving health and welfare.

Levy-funded research and development can contribute to a more sustainable future by improving technical efficiency, reducing costs of production and retaining positive public perceptions of dairy farming.

Dairy Research Partnership 2016-2021

The Research Partnership was funded by AHDB Dairy with financial contributions from the academic partners - University of Nottingham, Harper Adams University, Royal Veterinary College and SRUC.

The partnership, led by University of Nottingham, addresses three of our strategic priorities:

• Feed efficiency and sustainability
• Optimising cow performance through health & welfare
• Creating a positive image for dairy farming

Learn about the seven work packages in the Dairy Research Partnership Programme by visiting our webpage.