The Victorian Government has announced $20m funding towards feed management on the state’s dairy farms as part of the $42.5m DairyFeedbase program, delivering six transformational projects in soils, forage and animal nutrition over the next five years. Announcing the funding, Victoria’s agriculture minister Gayle Tierney said the program is helping invest in the dairy industry’s future to continue to be a leader in innovation, research and practical on-farm improvements.

The DairyFeedbase programs research soil health and pasture composition changes and measure and aim to reduce methane emissions, aiming to increase profitability and productivity of dairy farms while reducing their impact on the environment. So far, the program has made research breakthroughs, including optimising herd nutrition to boost productivity in a way that is resilient to the challenges of increasing temperatures and climate variability. The economic benefits of the DairyFeedbase and DairyBio programs are expected to exceed $1bn by 2030.