Plantain - a promising animal feed to improve water quality. Photo / Brad Hanson
Plantain - a promising animal feed to improve water quality. Photo / Brad Hanson
The humble plantain plant can help reduce nitrogen leaching by 20-60 per cent according to recent Massey University research when it is fed to cows.
The results, from the DairyNZ-led Plantain Potency and Practice (PPP) Programme, prove using Ecotain plantain in pasture can significantly reduce nitrogen entering waterways.
Farm trials at Massey University and initial results from a trial at Lincoln University are showing similar trends. The trials are part of the nationwide PPP research and development programme that partners with dairy farmers, industry and Government.
“These are exciting results – we now have robust scientific evidence that Ecotain plantain is an effective solution to help dairy farmers further reduce farm footprint and continue playing their part in improving water quality,” said DairyNZ chief executive Dr Tim Mackle yesterday at the presentation of the research results.
“Plantain can bring significant benefits to local waterways and communities – we all want healthy freshwater to swim and play in, and dairy farmers can confidently use Ecotain plantain on-farm to support that.
“These research findings are part of a broader programme of work to continue delivering on dairy’s commitment to reducing its environmental footprint in our local communities, while maintaining profitable businesses,” said Mackle.
The $22 million seven-year PPP Programme is funded by DairyNZ, by the Government through the Ministry for Primary Industries’ Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures fund, PGG Wrightson Seeds and Fonterra, working with six additional research and delivery partners.
The programme uses Ecotain environmental plantain from Agricom because it has proven effective. An evaluation system is available to assess the environmental benefits of all plantain cultivars sold by a range of providers.
At the Massey University farm trial, scientists are measuring nitrogen leaching from paddocks grazed by 80 dairy cows. After two years, the trial results have shown reduced nitrogen leaching by 20 to 60 per cent in perennial ryegrass and clover pastures containing 30 to 50 per cent Ecotain plantain.
The results are compared to traditional perennial ryegrass and clover paddocks (the most common pasture types in New Zealand). There was no difference in milk production between the plantain and control pastures in the trial.
Massey University Professor Emeritus Peter Kemp and his team have been researching the effects of plantain over several years and the experimental plots were established at the university in 2019.
“Building on decades of pastoral research at Massey, our team have designed an innovative drainage system that uses the soil structure on the farm to enable measurement of all the nitrogen leaching from each paddock,” he says.
Massey University test site.
“The four-year trial has had incredible success so far and our trial site allows the results to be directly transferable to current farming systems in New Zealand. Importantly for farmers, transition to plantain pastures results in no loss of production, while simultaneously reducing nitrogen leaching significantly from farms into freshwater.
“This supports current initiatives to protect our natural environment and improve waterways. Significantly, Massey University research has shown that this pasture regime also decreases the greenhouse gas emissions of nitrous oxide, a key issue for climate change,” says Prof Kemp.
DairyNZ, PGG Wrightson Seeds and Fonterra are collectively investing $10.47 million in cash and $2.8 million in kind in the programme, while the Government via MPI’s Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures fund is investing $8.98 million.
