Minimising and mitigating greenhouse gases from dairy farming will be one of the key roles of AgResearch's new Tokanui dairy research farm, near Te Awamutu.
The 200 hectare farm, which was officially opened on Friday, will undertake research on all aspects of dairy farming, including environmental management.
Among its targets are to reduce the leaching of nitrogen by 15 to 20 kilos per hectare a year by 2020, giving it a greenhouse gas footprint 20% lower than the average Waikato dairy farm.
AgResearch's chairman, Hawke's Bay farmer Sam Robinson, says it will operate as a modern, high intensity farming system, pushing the boundaries to see what works and what doesn't.