Southern Dairy Hub Field Days
Southern Dairy Hub Winter Field Day
Friday 3 July 2026, 11am to 1pm
SDH Calf Shed, 223 Branxholme Makarewa Road, Wallacetown
Southern Dairy Hub will host a winter field day on Friday 3 July, bringing together farmers, researchers, and rural professionals for a practical update on what’s been happening at the Hub.
Running from 11am to 1pm, the event will include a mix of seasonal reflections, cow behaviour insights, and practical on-farm discussion, before concluding with lunch courtesy of Ravensdown. Join us from 10.45am for a cuppa before we kick off at 11am.
Topics will include:
2025/26 season reflections
Rumination and cow behaviour insights in the winter
Our new standoff pad project
Responsible use of N fertiliser
This is a free event –
all farmers welcome!
The field day is designed to encourage practical discussion and provide an opportunity for farmers to share feedback and ideas around future research priorities at the Hub. We look forward to seeing you there.
Complimentary lunch thanks to Ravensdown.
SDH Field Day – October 2025
Southern Dairy Hub Farm Tour
With special guest: Charlotte Westwood (PGG Wrightson Seeds) and Leo Pekar (FarmWise)
Managing second-round grass and milk urea
Insights. Conversations. Practical tools for the season ahead.
SDH Field Day – April 2025
Are you making money from milk, or milk from money?
With special guests: Kim Robinson (NDDT), Conal Harkin (Harkin Ag Consultancy), Hennie Amtink (local farmer)
Insights from the Northland Dairy Development Trust (NDDT) marginal milk trial – what makes supplements profitable?
Analysis from Conal Harkin on milk response rates & concentrate feed
Practical grass management tips from a local farmer
Resources and presentations
Milk Response Rates From Concentrates In Early
Lactation At Different Post Grazing Residuals
SDH Field Day – September 2024
Dairy Beef Field Day
With special guest: Ben Watson (Genez Ltd), Andrea Dixon (SDH), Jason Archer (Beef and Lamb Genetics), Elyse Fletcher (NZ AgBiz), and Alex Field (Waipuna farm, Pamu).
Resources and presentations
SDH Field Day – July 2024
Farming for the Future
Land and Water Plan update
Wintering update
Getting our recycle on
Resources and presentations
SDH Field Day – March 2024
Interpreting market signals: Navigating the future of greenhouse gas emissions
With special guest: Andy Macfarlane
Director of ANZCO and Fonterra Chair of SFFF Plantain Project
Resources and presentations
SDH Field Day - October 2023
Southern Dairy Hub – General Update
Bale wintering research
Heat stress research
Ryan Luckman: Transition, Pre-Mate & Mating
PREVIOUS FIELD DAYS
5 years of research at the Southern Dairy Hub
Our first five years saw us engage in and complete over 20 projects at the Southern Dairy Hub.
Download the project list in the link below, along with our Field Day handout from October 2022 with summaries from our biggest projects.
We want to hear from you!
If you have a research idea, want to visit the Hub, or something is missing from our website - let us know!
Stay up to date with our newsletters, weekly HubWatch notes, Field Day notices and other updates.
Farm Data & Research
611 Ryal Bush Wallacetown Road
RD4, Southland 9874
Fonterra Supply Number 31445