Dairy Land Research Articles

Education on Brand Rights Protection as a Marketing Strategy for PT Products. Cisarua Mountain Dairy (Cimory)

PT. Cisarua Mountain Dairy (Cimory), a producer of premium food and dairy products in Indonesia, was established in 2005. This article emphasizes the importance of brand protection education as a marketing strategy for Cimory. This protection is regulated by Law No. 20 of 2016 concerning Trademarks and Geographical Indications, which covers registration, exclusive rights, and law enforcement. Trademark registration provides exclusive rights and prevents unauthorized use. The research method involved a direct visit to Cimory Dairy Land On The Valley in Semarang, where the author gathered information about brand identification, production processes, and trademark protection. The research results indicate that brand protection education is crucial for maintaining brand reputation and integrity, as well as reducing the risk of infringement. Companies like Cimory can be more effective in protecting their intellectual assets, preventing unauthorized use, and maintaining consumer trust. Steps such as trademark registration and internal education are key to marketing strategies aimed at strengthening brand positioning in the market and preventing potential infringements that could harm the company.

Edukasi Perlindungan Hak Merek Sebagai Strategi Pemasaran Produk PT. Cisarua Mountain Dairy (Cimory)

PT. Cisarua Mountain Dairy (Cimory), a producer of premium food and dairy products in Indonesia, was established in 2005. This article emphasizes the importance of brand protection education as a marketing strategy for Cimory. This protection is regulated by Law No. 20 of 2016 concerning Trademarks and Geographical Indications, which covers registration, exclusive rights, and law enforcement. Trademark registration provides exclusive rights and prevents unauthorized use. The research method involved a direct visit to Cimory Dairy Land On The Valley in Semarang, where the author gathered information about brand identification, production processes, and trademark protection. The research results indicate that brand protection education is crucial for maintaining brand reputation and integrity, as well as reducing the risk of infringement. Companies like Cimory can be more effective in protecting their intellectual assets, preventing unauthorized use, and maintaining consumer trust. Steps such as trademark registration and internal education are key to marketing strategies aimed at strengthening brand positioning in the market and preventing potential infringements that could harm the company.

CIMORY DAIRY LAND PRIGEN TOURIST DESTINATION WITH LEISURE PARK CONCEPT IN CATTLE FARMING IN PASURUAN

Cimory Dairy Land Prigen, located in Pasuruan Regency, East Java, carries the concept of a leisure park with a focus on cattle farming. This concept attracts various groups, ranging from families to tourists who are interested in the milk production process and farm life. This study aims to examine the application of the leisure park concept in Cimory Dairy Land Prigen, as well as its impact on visitor education and the local economy. This research also aims to identify development strategies that can increase the attractiveness and benefits of this destination. This research used a descriptive qualitative approach with data collection methods through in-depth interviews, direct observation, and document analysis. Interviews were conducted with managers, staff, and visitors, while observations were made to understand visitor interactions with existing facilities. Data were analyzed through reduction, presentation, and conclusion drawing to provide a comprehensive picture of the implementation of the leisure park concept in Cimory Dairy Land Prigen. The results showed that Cimory Dairy Land Prigen successfully implemented the leisure park concept well. This destination offers various educational and recreational activities such as farm tours, milking, and interaction with farm animals. Adequate infrastructure and supporting facilities such as restaurants and souvenir shops add to the convenience of visitors. The positive impact on the local economy is also evident from the support for micro, small and medium enterprises around the tourism area.

Production pathways for profitability and valuing ecosystem services for willow coppice in intensive agricultural applications

Increasing agricultural sustainability is a key challenge facing the globe today. Energy crops, planted as riparian buffers are one way to support this, simultaneously mitigating water quality degradation and climate change. However, the economics of implementing such riparian buffer systems is under researched. Hence this work conducted a bottom-up economic analysis of willow coppice riparian buffers on a Northern Irish dairy farm, which is indicative of agricultural intensification across Europe. This work includes an economic assessment of a willow coppice riparian buffer strip, using harvested yield data from an established willow buffer site for the first time. It also considered the impact of harvesting technology on the economic performance of a willow coppice riparian buffer strip for the first time. The analysis considered three willow production pathways: 1) direct chip harvesting, 2) full-stem harvesting, and 3) a scenario with a guaranteed purchasing contract for fresh chip. Economic performance was considered using net present value over a 25-year plantation lifetime. The full-stem scenario provided the highest economic return over its lifetime with an average yearly net present value of £497 ha−1 (in £ sterling). This system was then considered for integration into a typical dairy farm, assuming 5 % land usage and including government grants for establishing riparian zones. The result was a drop in value of £28 ha−1 yr−1 compared to a dairy-only scenario; however, per litre of milk the farm employing willow coppice riparian buffer strips outperformed a typical dairy farm both environmentally and economically. Further analysis considered a novel approach that included payments for ecosystem services in the economic analysis. This analysis found that the implementation of government payments for ecosystem services (nutrient removal) increased the economic return of the willow coppice riparian buffer system by £400 ha−1 yr−1, resulting in minimal impact on the return from dairy land.

Soil moisture is a primary driver of comammox Nitrospira abundance in New Zealand soils

The objectives of this study were to investigate the abundance and community composition of comammox Nitrospira under: (i) pasture-based dairy farms from different regions, and (ii) different land uses from the same region and soil type. The results clearly showed that comammox Nitrospira were most abundant (3.0 × 106 copies) under the west coast dairy farm conditions, where they were also significantly more abundant than canonical ammonia oxidisers. This was also true in the Canterbury dairy farm. The six land uses investigated were pine monoculture, a long term no input ecological trial, sheep + beef and Dairy, both irrigated and non-irrigated. It was concluded that comammox Nitrospira was most abundant under the irrigated dairy farm (2.7 × 106 copies). Contrary to the current industry opinion, the relatively high abundance of comammox Nitrospira under fertile irrigated dairy land suggests that comammox Nitrospira found in terrestrial ecosystems may be copiotrophic. it was also determined that comammox Nitrospira was more abundant under irrigated land use than their non-irrigated counterparts, suggesting that soil moisture is a key environmental parameter influencing comammox abundance. Comammox abundance was also positively correlated with annual rainfall, further supporting this theory. Phylogenetic analysis of the comammox Nitrospira detected determined that 17 % of the comammox community belonged to a newly distinguished subclade, clade B.2. The remaining 83 % belonged to clade B.1. No sequences from clade A were found.

Long-term monitoring of soil quality and trace elements to evaluate land use effects and temporal change in the Wellington region, New Zealand

Soil quality monitoring is used to assess the soil's ability to maintain agricultural productivity, ecological, and environmental quality. Very few soil quality monitoring studies have reported on multiple samplings over the long-term. Several regional authorities in New Zealand have monitored soil quality since the late 1990s. In the Wellington region, dairy, mixed cropping, market garden, drystock (sheep/beef), horticulture, exotic forestry and indigenous land use systems, and four soil orders have been monitored over 19 years, with up to five repeat samplings per site. This study reports on key soil quality indicators and Cu, Zn, and Cd concentrations. For the most recent sampling per land use, all land use system sites, except drystock, had Zn concentrations below recommended ecological toxicity guidelines. Dairy land use had 21%, and 36% of sites within recommended soil quality target ranges, for Olsen P, and macroporosity, respectively. Compared with indigenous land, across all samplings, Cu concentrations were elevated in horticultural and market gardens sites, while several land uses had lower total nitrogen and higher Olsen P concentrations. Across all samplings, significant increases over time were observed in Zn for dairy, total nitrogen for drystock, and Olsen P for mixed cropping. Significant decreases over time were observed for Cu in forestry, Cd for indigenous and forestry, and bulk density for drystock. No changes over time were detected for macroporosity, anaerobically mineralised nitrogen, or organic carbon. This study shows the programme and our analysis of multiple samplings are valuable for detecting significant trends as an early warning, e.g. Zn and Olsen P changes. The study provides evidence for recommending additional sites for several land uses and increased sampling frequency to ensure future robust statistical analysis. This study included only sites where land use systems did not change, providing a robust basis for detecting change over time, for informing policy, resource and environmental decision-making.

Quantifying contaminant losses to water from pastoral landuses in New Zealand II. The effects of some farm mitigation actions over the past two decades

ABSTRACT In New Zealand the primary sector together with central and local government agencies have been promoting measures to mitigate the adverse effect of farming practices on water quality over the last few decades. We assessed the effectiveness of some key measures such as stock exclusion, riparian protection, and nutrient and effluent management on reducing losses of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and sediment to water. Our aim was to determine how much progress has been made in decreasing contaminant discharges between 1995 and 2015 and to determine what the loads would have been if no mitigation had occurred. To do this we estimated losses from 37 dairy and non-dairy/sheep/beef farm typologies that captured the main attributes of production and contaminant loss pathways, nationally. We also accounted for the rate of uptake of measures. Our findings indicated that while the implementation of these measures has helped to reduce P losses (an estimated 20%–25% reduction) to water, they have not been sufficient to off-set estimated increases in N losses (25%) due to expansion of dairy land over the same period. National sediment load is estimated to have decreased (29%) because of afforestation and other soil conservation works.

Quantifying National-Scale Changes in Agricultural Land Exposure to Fluvial Flooding

This study quantifies the exposure of agricultural land in Aotearoa-New Zealand’s (A-NZ) flood hazard zones (FHZs). We developed a spatio-temporal flood exposure framework to quantify the extent of the area and yearly earnings before income and tax (EBIT) for arable, forestry, horticulture, sheep and beef, and dairy land in FHZs between 1990 and 2016. In 1990, ~1.57 million hectares of agricultural land were exposed, decreasing slightly to ~1.50 million hectares by 2016. However, there was a change in the lower-value types of agricultural land uses being exposed, such as for sheep and beef farming and forestry, toward dairy farming (from ~364,000 hectares in FHZs in 2008 to ~471,000 hectares in 2016). Dairy farming is more intensively staffed with larger amounts of fixed assets, making them less resilient to flood impacts. Despite this, conversion to dairy farming even within the identified FHZs has been driven by the increasing profitability of the enterprise. As a result of both the production value change and land area increases, the dairy EBIT values within FHZs rose rapidly from NZD 382 million to NZD 1.25 billion between 2008 and 2012, creating significantly more economic exposure for A-NZ. This trend is particularly evident in the Southland, Canterbury, and Waikato regions. Similarly, in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Hawke’s Bay regions, there was an increase in high-value horticultural land—predominantly viticulture—in FHZs (a increase of NZD 321 million in annual EBIT for exposed horticulture across the three regions). Identifying sub-national trends in agricultural flood exposure allows for a detailed analysis of the likely impacts in high-risk areas, which can inform emergency management plans and mitigative actions that diminish the economic impacts from flood events.

Quantifying contaminant losses to water from pastoral land uses in New Zealand III. What could be achieved by 2035?

ABSTRACT To meet the water quality outcomes sought by catchment communities and regulators, the losses of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and sediment from dairy and sheep/beef farms must be reduced across many catchments. We conducted a high-level desktop analysis of farm typologies and established that if mitigation actions were fully implemented across dairy and sheep/beef farms, losses of N and P could have been decreased by up to 16 and 23%, respectively, compared to the estimated losses for 2015 (where established actions were only partially implemented). Potential decreases were greater for dairy land (34% N and 26% P) because of its greater per hectare yield and number of mitigation actions available before land use change is required. If established and developing mitigation actions were fully implemented by 2035, potential N, P and sediment losses may decrease by up to 34, 39 and 66%, respectively, compared to actual 2015 losses. These results can inform investment and planning by the rural sector as part of an assessment of the potential for on-farm actions to mitigate losses from existing land use.

Benefits and Trade-Offs of Dairy System Changes Aimed at Reducing Nitrate Leaching.

Simple SummaryReducing inputs of nitrogen fertiliser and purchased feed, with an associated reduction in stocking rate on pastoral dairy farms resulted in less nitrate leaching. A co-benefit was a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. The exception was the implementation of a wintering barn where nitrate leaching was reduced, but greenhouse gas emissions remained unchanged due to greater manure storage and handling. Emission reductions in the lower-input systems came at an average loss of profit of approximately NZ$100 per tonne CO2-equivalent.Between 2011 and 2016, small-scale farm trials were run across three dairy regions of New Zealand (Waikato, Canterbury, Otago) to compare the performance of typical regional farm systems with farm systems implementing a combination of mitigation options most suitable to the region. The trials ran for at least three consecutive years with detailed recording of milk production and input costs. Nitrate leaching per hectare of the milking platform (where lactating cows are kept) was estimated using either measurements (suction cups), models, or soil mineral nitrogen measurements. Post-trial, detailed farm information was used in the New Zealand greenhouse gas inventory methodology to calculate the emissions from all sources; dairy platform, dairy support land used for wintering non-lactating cows (where applicable) and replacement stock, and imported supplements. Nitrate leaching was also estimated for the support land and growing of supplements imported from off-farm using the same methods as for the platform. Operating profit (NZ$/ha/year), nitrate leaching (kg N/ha/year), and greenhouse gas emissions (t CO2-equivalent/ha/year) were all expressed per hectare of milking platform to enable comparisons across regions. Nitrate leaching mitigations adopted in lower-input (less purchased feed and nitrogen fertiliser) farm systems reduced leaching by 22 to 30 per cent, and greenhouse gas emissions by between nine and 24 per cent. The exception was the wintering barn system in Otago, where nitrate leaching was reduced by 45 per cent, but greenhouse gas emissions were unchanged due to greater manure storage and handling. Important drivers of a lower environmental footprint are reducing nitrogen fertiliser and purchased feed. Their effect is to reduce feed flow through the herd and drive down both greenhouse gas emissions and nitrate leaching. Emission reductions in the lower-input systems of Waikato and Canterbury came at an average loss of profit of approximately NZ$100/t CO2-equivalent (three to five per cent of industry-average profit per hectare).

Water-quality issues facing dairy farming: potential natural and built attenuation of nitrate losses in sensitive agricultural catchments

Context Dairy farming will be increasingly scrutinised for its environmental impacts, in particular for its impacts on freshwater quality in New Zealand and elsewhere. Management and mitigation of high nitrate losses is one of the greatest water-quality challenges facing dairy farming in New Zealand and other countries. Management of critical flow pathways and nitrate-attenuation capacity could offer potential solutions to this problem and help maintain dairy-farming productivity, while reducing its water-quality impacts. Aims The present paper reviewed the key water-quality issues faced by dairy farming and assessed potential of emerging edge-of-paddock technologies, and catchment-scale nutrient-attenuation practices, to reduce nitrate losses from dairy farming to receiving water bodies. Methods We developed a conceptual catchment-scale modelling analysis assessing potential natural and built attenuation of nitrate losses from dairy farming in the Tararua and Rangitikei catchments (located in the lower part of the North Island, New Zealand). Key results This exploratory analysis suggests that a reduction of greater than 25% in the river nitrate loads from dairy-farming areas could potentially be achieved by spatially aligning dairy land with areas of high subsurface nitrate-attenuation capacity, and by managing critical flow pathways using innovative edge-of-field technologies such as controlled drainage, drainage-water harvesting for supplemental irrigation, woodchip bioreactors, and constructed wetlands in the study catchments. Conclusions The research findings highlighted the potential to better understand, map and effectively utilise existing natural and new built-in nitrate-attenuation capacity to significantly reduce water-quality impacts from dairy farming across environmentally sensitive agricultural catchments. This knowledge and tools could help farmers close the gap between what can be achieved with current, in-field mitigation practises and the nitrogen-loss allocation imposed by regulatory authorities. Implications However, the research findings presented here are based on a coarse-scale, conceptual modelling analysis, and therefore further research is recommended to develop tools and practices to better understand, map and effectively utilise existing natural and new built-in nitrogen attenuation capacity at farm-scale to achieve productive and environmentally friendly pastoral dairy farming across agricultural landscapes.

Quantification of environmental-economic trade-offs in nutrient management policies

Nitrogen losses from agricultural are a key source of human impacts on the environment, and many countries have adopted policies to reduce nitrogen losses. Policy in New Zealand is being developed at the national and regional levels to address nitrogen losses and water quality. Several policy options were explored using a multi-agent simulation model of the Southland region of New Zealand in order to quantify the trade-off between the economic value of agricultural production and nitrogen losses from farming. It estimated the relative effectiveness and efficiency of alternative nitrogen mitigation policies while taking into account the heterogeneity of soil vulnerability to nitrogen leaching, land management options, and farmer behaviour. It used a hybrid modelling technique, assembling a multi-disciplinary model from outputs of other, specialised models, and using an agent-based approach to model land-use change. The policy options included uniform limits on nitrogen losses that applied across all farms, as well as differentiated policies that took into account either the propensity of a farm to leach nitrogen, past dairy conversion, or the type of land use. After 25 years, the impacts on dairy land area, nitrogen losses, agricultural production, and farm gross margin were compared with a baseline of no policy. The results suggested that policies worked better when they took account of the heterogeneity of agriculture practices and the environment. Those policies could be more effective at reducing nitrogen losses from farms, in term of the total mitigation in the region. They were also more efficient across the policies modelled: per kilogram of nitrogen mitigated, they produced the lowest economic costs. Choosing the right policy approach would be some combination of the absolute level of mitigation required, the historical patterns of land use, the variability of the absorptive capacity of the environment, the ability to spread the economic or environmental impacts across many farms and people, and the ability to specify required input or outputs. Most importantly, hybrid multi-agent simulation modelling provided a tool for examining the potential impacts of policies before they are implemented.

Mapping the potential risk of Escherichia coli leaching through soils of the Waikato River catchment, New Zealand

A regional-scale map showing the potential risk of Escherichia coli leaching through soil on flat to rolling land was developed for the soils within the Waikato River catchment. Microbial breakthrough curves were developed for representative soils of the catchment that are commonly under dairy land use. These microbial breakthrough curves were generated under laboratory conditions using large, intact soil lysimeters irrigated with farm dairy effluent followed by continuous clean water irrigation. Some of the lysimeters were later used to monitor E. coli leaching under field conditions. The soils were rated as having a high, medium or low potential for leaching E. coli based on the microbial breakthrough curves or concentrations of E. coli in leachates from the field investigation. The potentials were correlated with the New Zealand Soil Classification to allow regionalisation to all soils within the Waikato River catchment. The catchment-scale map revealed that ~60% of the flat to rolling soils in Waikato are rated as having a low potential for leaching E. coli. These soils are typically Pumice or Allophanic Soils. The map can be used to raise the awareness of management of farm effluent irrigation to minimise microbial pathogen contamination of water bodies.

Cows, Cash and Climate: Low Stocking Rates, High-Performing Cows, Emissions and Profitability across New Zealand Farms

Using the New Zealand Monitor Farm Data (NZMFD), this paper explores the cost-effectiveness of two mitigation options to reduce biological greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on farms: reducing stocking rate (SR; the number of cows per effective hectare of dairy land); and increasing animal performance (AP; measured by production of milk solids (MS) per cow). These mitigation options have been defined as “no cost” because, if applied together, they could reduce the carbon footprint of farms while also maintaining or even improving profits (de Klein & Dynes, 2017). We evaluate the effect of these mitigation options on three main variables: milk profitability of the farm (cash operating surplus (COS)/ton of MS produced); emissions intensity (ton CO2eq/ton of MS produced); and the value of emissions (COS/ton CO2eq). The paper has two main findings: high-AP farms show significantly lower emissions intensities and higher milk profitability; and higher SRs on farms are significantly associated with lower emissions intensities while not being significantly associated with milk profitability or negatively associated with profit per hectare. These results imply that higher levels of AP reduce the GHG intensity of the farm and increase profit – a “no-cost” option – but unless either the SR or the area under dairy farming fall, an increase in AP will lead to an increase in absolute emissions. However, our results cast doubt on the idea that reducing SR is a no-cost way to achieve absolute emission reductions. The two options do seem to constitute a no-cost outcome when combined, but potentially the same mitigation could be achieved with lower loss of profit by reducing the area of dairy land while maintaining high SRs and increasing the performance of the animals.

The impact of nutrient regulations on dairy farm land values in Southland

ABSTRACTEnvironment Southland is setting water quality limits in Southland, New Zealand. It has been well-documented that restrictions on nutrient losses from dairy farms are likely to negatively impact on farm profitability. Less understood is the influence of these regulations on rural land values. Dairy land values have traditionally been driven, in part, by changes in profitability expectations, although lags exist. Therefore, there is a risk that the costs of implementing water quality limits will impact on rural land values. Farm systems modelling was used to investigate the cost of reducing nutrient losses. Present valuation methodology was then used to examine the potential impact of this cost on dairy farm land values. Results show that mitigating nutrient losses from dairy farms in Southland reduces operating profit, resulting in a reduction of land value. Modelling suggests a 20% reduction in nitrogen leaching reduced operating profit by 14% and land value by 17%. The 25th and 75th percentile for the reduction in operating profit was −17.2% and −10.5% respectively. The 25th and 75th percentile for the reduction in land value was −21.5% and −13.1% respectively.

Catchment-scale contribution of invasive nitrogen fixing shrubs to nitrate leaching: a scoping study

ABSTRACTWoody nitrogen (N) fixers are known to fix atmospheric N at very high rates. However, N leached from woody N fixers is rarely accounted for in catchment nutrient budgets. We conducted a scoping study to determine the potential impact of the invasive N fixer gorse (Ulex europaeus) on water quality in an agricultural catchment in New Zealand. With current gorse cover (596 ha) our model-based leaching estimates suggest that gorse accounts for 1.7%–2.4% of total N leaching in the catchment. This is equivalent to leaching from 1200–1800 ha of pasture (averaged across both dry stock and dairy land uses). In our worst-case scenario, with gorse covering over 5000 ha, we estimate that N leaching from gorse would account for 12%–25% of the catchment total. The expected increase in N leaching under this scenario is equivalent to leaching for 9000–14000 ha of pasture, suggesting that gorse could significantly constrain capacity for agricultural expansion or intensification if a cap on N loads is imposed in the catchment. These results show that leaching from gorse is probably much higher than currently assumed. Further, land use policies aiming to abandon marginal land may cause a net increase in leaching if large areas of abandoned land are colonised by gorse.

A National Assessment of the Potential Linkage between Soil, and Surface and Groundwater Concentrations of Phosphorus

AbstractA meta‐analysis of three national databases determined the potential linkage between soil and surface and groundwater enrichment with phosphorus (P). Soil P was enriched especially under dairying commensurate with an increase in cow numbers and the tonnage of P‐fertilizers sold. Median P concentrations were enriched in surface waters receiving runoff from industrial and dairy land uses, and in groundwater beneath dairying especially in those aquifers with gravel or sand lithology, irrespective of groundwater redox status. After geographically pairing surface and groundwater sites to maximize the chance of connectivity, a subset of sites dominated by aquifers with gravel and sand lithology showed increasing P concentrations with as little as 10 years data. These data raise the possibility that groundwater could contribute much P to surface water if: there is good connectivity between surface and groundwater, intensive land use occurs on soils prone to leaching, and leached‐P is not attenuated through aquifers. While strategies are available to mitigate P loss from intensive farming systems in the short‐term, factors such as enriched soils and slow groundwater may mean that despite their use, there will be a long‐term input (viz. legacy), that may sustain surface water P enrichment. To avoid poor surface water quality, management and planning may need to consider the connectivity and characteristics of P in soil‐groundwater‐surface water systems.

Can soil change be assessed for the Victorian dairy industry?

Meeting the increased demand for dairy products will require careful management of soils to minimise land degradation and sustain increased production. Key to providing farmers with the tools to manage their soils sustainably, is firstly understanding the soil types currently managed by dairy farmers, and secondly quantifying changes in soil properties in response to management. The Victorian Land Use Information System was interrogated to identify dairy land parcels and these data overlaid on soil survey information to identify the dominant soil orders managed by dairy farmers in the three dairy regions of Victoria. Of the approximately 590,000 hectares of dairy land identified across the state, Sodosols (33%), Chromosols (20%), Dermosols (16%), and Vertosols (11%) are the major soil Orders represented, although the dominant soil Orders vary for each region. Legacy data from research and extension activities undertaken between 1995 and 2010 were collated to understand regional differences in dairy soil properties. All soil properties were significantly and positively skewed with higher median pH, EC and available K in northern Victorian soils. Further analysis compared the 1995 to 2010 data with data from samples analysed by the government analytical laboratory between 1973 and 1980 to assess any differences over 38 years. The older soil chemical data were also positively skewed but had lower median soil pH, Olsen P and available K, consistent with the greater use of inputs by the industry in more recent years.

The dynamics of dairy land use change with respect to the milk quota regime

This paper analyses the sequence of changes in land used for milk production on dairy farms in the period before, during, and towards the abolishment of milk quotas. Using a unique dataset comprising farm level data of the Netherlands between 1971 and 2011 we estimate two duration models, analysing the time period between changes in case of increases and decreases in dairy land use. The impact of milk quota, socio-economic and production variables on the likelihood of a farm changing his land use are assessed. Results show that quota abolishment will lead to a more dynamic dairy sector.

Soil natural capital quantification by the stock adequacy method

A method is presented for assessing soil natural capital based on the principles of land evaluation. Policymakers are adopting concepts of flows of ecosystem services, and the natural capital stocks that support them, to provide more integrated analyses of the trade-offs between environmental, economic, social and cultural outcomes from land use. Soil is frequently overlooked in these analyses. Techniques are needed to quantify and map soil natural capital and their potential to provide ecosystem services to enable the soil science community to more effectively engage with decision-makers. To support this engagement, these techniques need to use available soil survey maps and databases to provide extensive geographic coverage of soil natural capital estimates. The method presented estimates the adequacy of soil natural capital stocks to support the soil processes behind the provision of ecosystem services under a specific land use. A stock adequacy index estimates the degree to which the provision of services is limited by soil natural capital stocks or advantaged by a stock surplus under a given land use. Reference values are derived from a curve of the response of the provision of the service to key soil stocks for a specified land use. These curves are determined from land evaluation and soil quality literature, or by modelling. The method is essentially an extension of land evaluation in which the evaluations are calibrated using an ecosystem approach. The output indices provide information about potential ecosystem services provision, land-use suitability, soil resource use efficiency, and environmental performance. Outputs from the method are demonstrated for a range of soils under pastoral dairy land use in Wairarapa, New Zealand.