AgResearch's new Waikato dairy farm will be at the forefront of research to reduce the sector's greenhouse gas emissions.
The recently converted $6.5 million Tokanui Dairy Research Farm, near Te Awamutu, will include greenhouse gas mitigation research among its programmes, alongside environmental management, productivity gains and differentiated milk.
AgResearch climate, land and environment scientist Stewart Ledgard said the 340ha farm would milk 700 cows, rising to 800 by 2010, and it already had a carbon footprint 20% below the New Zealand average.
Scientists would look at mitigation steps applicable to the wider industry.
That would include achieving high milk solid production per cow, more efficient production of milk relative to cow maintenance, efficient use of fertiliser and the role of nitrogen inhibitors.
AgResearch chief executive Andy West said research farms could be pushed and put into situations normal commercial farms could not.
Tokanui was also a sign AgResearch was making a push into dairy research, an area in which the science company had previously not been strong, with just two of its 13 research farms devoted to dairying.
"This really is a serious commitment," Dr West said.
Another area of research was differentiated milk.
Dr West said the dairy industry was largely built on processing large volumes of the same milk, but as on-farm costs increased, New Zealand may need to consider targeting higher value markets with specialty products.
For example, New Zealand soils were low in selenium, so it could research selenium-rich milk, or milk enhanced with antibacteria to fight diseases such as thrush.
Dr West said New Zealand's landscape was likely to change from other uses such as tree-planting for carbon sinks and new crops competing with dairy, sheep and beef, and Tokanui would play a role in ensuring the dairy industry remained viable.
Recently, a tea plantation opened in the Waikato which Dr West said claimed it would financially compete with most current land uses.
"We are going to see a more diverse pattern of land use, different plants, different markets and diverse dairy farming."