Despite rain in some areas, many Australian dairy and beef producers face a forage shortage over the winter months, with fibre sources being the most challenging to provide.

“We’ve never faced a challenge of this nature before but help is available,” said Dairy Australia’s Chris Murphy.

Dairy Australia is co-ordinating Feed.FIBRE.Future, a program to help farmers make decisions about feeding their herds over the winter. It’s being delivered with $400,000 funding from the Federal Government (DAFF).

Feed.FIBRE.Future is providing farmers with information, advice and support in making decisions.

Technical information has been published in a series of easy-to-read fact sheets on topics such as risk factors with low fibre diets, alternative fibre sources, feed additives and feeding management tips.

Feed.FIBRE.Future workshops are being run across dairying areas in June and July. These provide technical and management information to help farmers assess their current position, review feasible feeding strategies and options, and develop a plan to get through the winter.

A second series of workshops will offer farmers a free 90-minute individual consultation with an adviser with nutrition and farm business expertise.

These ‘1-on-1 sessions’ will help farmers quantify their feed gap, based on the amount of feed available on-farm and herd requirements.

The adviser will help tailor options to close the feed gap, considering resources available. Farmers will leave with a plan specifically designed for their individual situation.
 
Stanhope dairy farmers, Graeme and Fleur Nurse participated in a pilot ‘1-on-1 session’ in June.

“It was a really good opportunity to look at the whole picture and plan ahead. Back on the farm we are focussed on the immediate challenges. As a result of the session we’ve changed our young stock’s diet which will mean we get more value from our (hefty) investment in feed this winter,” said Graeme.

Feed.FIBRE.Future is a collaborative project supported by the Federal Government (DAFF), the Australian Dairy Industry Council (ADIC), Dairy Australia, the Cattle Council of Australia (CCA) and Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA).

For more information, visit the Feed.FIBRE.Future section of this website. To register for a  ‘1-on-1 session’ contact your dairy company field officer or regional drought co-ordinator.    

Regional drought co-ordinators
NVic: John Boyd  P: 03 5852 0533 M: 0400 083 285 E: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
SWVic: Jeff Lawes P: 03 5592 2477 M: 0418 717 552 E: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Gipps: Deanne Kennedy P: 03 5659 4219 M: 0419 878 055 E: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
NSW:  Jess Jennings  M: 0423 224 750  E: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Qld:  Theresa Kunde mob 0428 147 749 E: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Tas: Fiona Gluszyk P: 03 6332 1800 E:  This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
SA: Kirsty Flower P: 08 8765 9043   E: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
WA: Lara Swift     P: 08 9486 2100  E: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
NT:  Ian McLean     M: 0401 118 191 This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it