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Fair Oaks Farms has a “perfect circle” of nitrogen, phosphorous, natural gas, protein and milk

NITROGEN, phosphorous, natural gas, protein and milk — they are all produced on one US dairy farm.

US enterprise Fair Oaks Farms chief executive Gary Corbett told the Australian Dairy Conference at Geelong today how his farm milking 37,000 cows operates in the “perfect circle”.

The free-stall barn operation milks 800 cows every 6.5 minutes for 23 hours a day serving the fluid milk market.

The 1.6 million gallons of liquid manure produced at the dairy operation is fed through a digester with the end product used in many ways.

For example liquid manure is turned into gas to power the businesses’ 45 truck fleet as well as crucial fertiliser, with the water used to grow a source of protein which is added to the herd’s total mix ration.

Fair Oaks Farms also produce more than 60 per cent of its own feed and also operates as a tourist farm.

Between 550,000-570,000 visitors travel to the Indiana farm each year and are given the chance to learn about the dairy industry as well as tour the property and practice of milk harvesting.

Visitors can also watch cows calve in a specialised “birthing barn” auditorium which seats 400 people behind glass.

In July Fair Oaks Farms opened a pig adventure operation with 3000 sows and this July will open a Farmhouse restaurant.

Murray Goulburn managing director Gary Helou also addressed the conference via video link from the “Gulfood” trade show at Dubai.

Mr Helou stressed the importance of investment in dairy manufacturing and the push into international markets.

He told the crowd inquiry from Russia had increased 10-fold in the past six to 12 months and Asia should be the dairy industry’s focus.

“The future is in Asia not the domestic market,” he said.

Mr Helou stressed MG’s focus on increasing farmgate prices by an incremental $1kg of milk solids.

The conference continues tomorrow.