An optimisation model was developed to compare the profitability of different forage species on irrigated dairy farms. The model is driven by the energy and protein requirements of the milking cow. The objective of the model is to maximise income, after herd and feed costs, by selecting the area...

The dairy industry in northern Victoria faced dramatic changes between 2001/02 and 2002/03. Drought resulted in a substantial decrease in availability, and subsequent increase in price, of irrigation water and supplementary feed. Most farms recorded substantial net cash flow deficits. Prior to...

Survey information in most countries shows very clearly that farmers achieve a wide range of profitability levels. Some of the variation will be due to farmers having different goals and objectives, but a significant proportion will also be due to variations in managerial skill. If even modest...

Acid and acidifying soils occur extensively in Australia. Currently, some 90 million hectares of agricultural land in Australia is considered to be acidic and around 35 million hectares are considered to be highly acidic which is both a serious agricultural and environmental problem. The nature,...

Uncertainty has been under-recognised as an impediment to the adoption of innovative land conservation practices. High levels of uncertainty inhibit adoption because (a) most farmers are psychologically averse to risk and uncertainty, (b) uncertainty leaves room for misunderstanding and...

Precision farming has the potential to increase farm productivity, lower input costs and increase expected returns. Despite these potential benefits, the adoption of precision farming technology in Australia has been relatively slow. One of the reasons for this is the lack of information...

One of the outcomes of the merger of the Farm Management Society of Central South Australia and AARES was a project to record the history of the Australian Farm Management Society. As part of this project it was decided to develop a bibliography of Australian Farm Management Research and...