Extension activities to improve technology use on farm

Abstract

The Grazing Best Management Practice program incorporates a voluntary, online self-assessment for beef producers and extension activities designed to assist in improving enterprise productivity and sustainability. The use of technology on farm is ever increasing, resulting in improved efficiency and reduced labour. Producers are utilising scales and cattle recording systems but are often not making best use of the technology capabilities. The Burnett Mary and Fitzroy DAF Beef Extension teams partnered with private product providers to deliver two workshops in Gayndah and Rockhampton highlighting how the herd information recorded could be beneficial. Presenters discussed what information was important to record, how to interpret the data and transform it into useful information for management decision making. Service and product providers discussed the available technology and practical tips for operation. This paper presents a summary of the success of these workshops and associated producer feedback.