Bar Tech

We've teamed up with leading organisations to bring you the latest advice and tips on different silage systems. Learn about the three grass silage production systems – multi-cut, conventional and bales – and the benefits each one can bring to dairy farmers. Read all three articles here

There is no doubt that the conversations about sustainability in agriculture, and farming practices that work with, and protect and enhance the environment are now widely discussed, including regenerative agriculture. A quick Google will throw up thousands of answers for what is ‘regenerative agriculture’ but however you prefer to define it, or not, the principles of maximising the value in our land while ensuring it is there for generations to come is important to everyone. We are all working towards a common goal of resilience, to ensure our businesses are sustainable while helping to grow food and looking after our soil, wildlife and land to support the wider environment. Collaborating with farmers and across the industry, our aim is to help farmers use and maximise the value of grass, whether for silage or grazing, cover crops or inter-sown to support crop growth and soil health, we believe the value of the varieties bred for agriculture can help farmers increase farm resilience by maximising it.

Read our Groundswell update

Down to Earth aims to explore how regenerative agriculture can be integrated into a livestock enterprise and is held at an organic dairy farm that applies regenerative practices, resulting in regularly achieving grass yields of 11t DM/ha without any bought in inputs.

The day covered all levels of knowledge, for those just starting out down the regenerative path to those who have been avid followers for a number of years. The main focus of the day was organised tours around the farm, stopping at key locations with expert guests discussing a range of topics including soil health and management, agroforestry, water management and carbon auditing to name a few. Barenbrug sponsored the Pasture Management tent, which saw Mhairi Dawson, discussing grassland management alongside Bess Jowsey, Pasture to Profit Consultant, Livestock Improvement Corporation (LIC) on the role of multispecies swards and the benefits and Jim McRobert, Technical Manager, Carrs Billington on down to earth milk production diets. Around the rest of the show, there were a range of exhibitor stands, practical demonstrations and a main stage hosting leading industry speakers. 

With phenomenal uptake, considering the short time, the event attracted more than 1500 people on the day, resulting in lively discussions and plenty of questions for the speakers. The pasture management tent was no exception with all three busy tours throwing up queries to keep the hosts on their toes.

Overall, this was an excellent collaborative event with people from across the industry engaging in discussion and keen to share and learn more.