19 Nov 2018
The NSW Dairy Farm Monitor Project results have confirmed 2017-18 was a challenging year for the dairy industry in NSW.
NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) dairy technical specialist, Kerry Kempton, will present findings from the NSW Dairy Farm Monitor Project in the Bega, Hunter and Wauchope regions later this month.
"Our analysis of 32 farms across NSW confirmed it has been a tough year for dairy farmers, with widespread drought and significantly increased feed costs," Ms Kempton said.
"Despite a five per cent increase in milk prices, these tough conditions have seen farm business profits sink to the lowest level since the project began in 2011.
"The meetings offer an opportunity to discuss the current state and challenges for of the NSW dairy industry and explore data and trends from the last seven years."
Ms Kempton said the Dairy Farm Monitor Project delivers a comprehensive physical and financial analysis of participating farms from across NSW.
"These reports are used by industry and government to inform policy and service delivery," she said.
"Farmers can examine their performance and identify areas for improvement.
"Results and trends from the data need to be interpreted carefully, as participating farms are a cross-section of the industry and there is some change of farms participating each year."
The Dairy Farm Monitor Project is co-funded by NSW DPI and Dairy Australia, and the data collected through the Dairy Farm Monitor project is stored in Dairy Australia’s national DairyBase, where producers can make comparisons with their own farms and identify areas for improvement.
Opportunities to attend Dairy NSW Farm Business Management workshops will be presented to participants during events in Bega on Tuesday November 20, Vacy on Monday November 26 and Brombin on Tuesday November 27.
Contact Dairy Australia, [email protected] or 0488 277 133, to register.
