DairyCo gets the go ahead for two major new Research Partnerships

The DairyCo board has given the go ahead for two major new Research Partnerships and has confirmed the intention to call for tenders from single research centres or consortiums at the beginning of December.

The aim of the partnerships will be to establish strong links between DairyCo, a division of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), and British scientific research centres.  One partnership will focus on animal health and welfare and dairy cow nutrition, the other on grass, forage and soil management.

With funding of up to 500,000 per annum for each five-year partnership, the projects will bring an opportunity for high quality research that will provide dairy farmers with the most up-to-date information available at a time of decreasing levels of funding for applied research.

The arrangements will provide the research and information needed to deliver DairyCos research and development and knowledge transfer strategies and meet some of the recommendations made by the DairyCo Research Advisory Forum, which was created to help identify future research needs for the dairy industry.

DairyCo board member and chairman of the Research Advisory Forum Kenny Campbell, has been pleased to see this new way of working developed: The Research Advisory Forum has done a great job in advising the board on what the research needs are.  I am pleased that the board has broadly adopted the recommendations and is inviting the tenders to carry out much of the recommended work.

DairyCo board chairman, Tim Bennett, says: The call for tenders for this project represents an innovative new approach to research and development for DairyCo and shows that the organisation is now fully focused on research and development and knowledge transfer.

This is an exciting final chapter in the changes instigated to the organisation by the DairyCo board over the last two and half years to ensure that DairyCo focuses its services and the levy in those areas where a difference can really be made.

These Research Partnerships will also bring opportunities for other AHDB sectors to join individual projects as and when appropriate.

The contracts are scheduled to begin on 1 June 2011.

DairyCos 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).