Dairy InSight Receives Huge Interest

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday 28 January 2004

Dairy InSight Receives Huge Interest

There has been a huge response to Dairy InSight's call for funding applications for industry good projects to fund from June 1 this year.

Dairy InSight had received 200 applications for the $7.1 million of funds available, when applications closed late last year.

Chief Executive Peter Bodeker says the high number of applications demonstrates the huge interest from service providers with a range of ideas for making improvements to production, farm management, workforce development or any aspect of dairy farming.

"It is the second time we have called for funding applications and in our first round early last year we received 270 applications and funded 94 - that was when we had more than $35 million available for funding."

Mr Bodeker says the organisation has already committed more than two-thirds of its total funding for the 2004/2005 year to projects, like the Animal Health Board's Tb strategy and Dexcel's extension service.

"The high response to the smaller amount of funds available this time around ensures we will have no trouble investing the funds in some very good projects.

"The high number of applications has meant that we are over-subscribed and we will be unable to fund all the good ideas that have come forward. If we were able, we could probably spend two or three times the funds available," he says.

The funding applications received are for projects fitting Dairy InSight's key interest areas - research and development, farm systems, data analysis and information generation, technology transfer, industry promotion, education and training, and quality control and product safety.

Mr Bodeker says many of the good ideas have come from the industry's traditional research powerhouses - such as Dexcel, AgResearch, NIWA and the Universities.

From the 200 applications received, 23 were unsuitable as they did not fit the industry good criteria and were unable to demonstrate market failure.

The remaining 177 applications have been forwarded to the Independent Advisory Panel for review. Recommendations will then be made to the Dairy InSight Board.

In April, the Board will make the final decisions on projects to fund from June 1.

Further information on the funding programme and application process is available on http://www.dairyinsight.co.nz/ or freephone 0800 446 744.

ENDS

© Scoop Media