Optimisation models are a key tool for the analysis of emerging policies, price sets, and technologies within grazing systems. A detailed nonlinear optimisation model of a New Zealand dairy farming system is described. The framework is notable for its rich portrayal of pasture and cow biology...

New Zealand dairy farms are responsible for a large proportion of this nation's greenhouse gas emissions (GHG-e), arising mainly from enteric methane and urinary nitrogen deposition on pasture. De-intensification and the use of specific mitigation strategies can reduce GHG-e from dairy farms,...

Grazing systems constitute the most extensive land use worldwide. However, economic analysis of these systems has mainly involved the use of linear optimisation methods that provide a general description of the complex processes contained therein. This paper describes a nonlinear optimisation...

Improvement in nitrogen leaching efficiency (NLE)—the kilograms of milk solids produced per kilogram of nitrogen leached—has been proposed as one strategy to reduce the amount of nitrogen (N) leached from New Zealand dairy farms. A whole-farm optimisation model is used to assess the...

type="main" xml:id="ajar12034-abs-0001" <p>Nutrient emissions from pastoral agriculture are a global cause of declining water quality. Their management is complicated through variability arising from climate and soil influences. This paper compares the implications of input-based policies and...</p>