Goodbye mud and wet hooves!
Feed pads have moved in at the Borrie's farm in New Zealand
Join us for an extraordinary project in the heart of the Lower Waitaki Plains, New Zealand at the Borrie's dairy farm. The owners Michelle and Rogan Borrie embarked on an ambitious project to enhance farm operations and address growing environmental challenges. The result was a so-called 'feed pad' for their 500 dairy cows, where the animals are fed without standing in deep mud on the pasture. Especially in the cold and wet New Zealand winter, this is a gain in terms of animal welfare and labor efficiency.
| Number of animals | 500 cows |
| Breed | Holstein |
| feed pad size | 1,600 m² |
| Year built | 2022 |
| Country | New Zealand |
Michelle and Rogan Borrie have been farming for over 20 years. The couple operates three farms with approximately 2,500 milking cows. Now, with a strong focus on labor efficiency, sustainability and animal welfare, they have transformed their first dairy farm with 500 cows.
Winter in New Zealand – a challenging time for farmers and animals
In New Zealand, cows spend almost 24/7 on pasture. During very bad weather or in winter, when pastures become quite soft, the dairy cows are moved to fenced areas to prevent pasture damage. Besides the challenges in farm management, animal health suffers significantly during these months as cows stand in mud on the pasture, leading to permanently wet and dirty hooves. For this reason, they decided to build a so-called feed pad, benefiting both animal welfare and environmental protection.
From the idea to implementation
The couple visited several farms in New Zealand to gather inspiration and see what works well in practice and could possibly be transferred to their farm. Woodchips were often used as a ground on the farms, but these are difficult to obtain and also expensive. This led to the idea of installing rubber mats on the feed pads instead. They chose our SIESTA mat, as it offers good softness thanks to its air cushion-like profile and is very slip-resistant as well as robust at the same time. The proven puzzle connection creates an almost seamless standing and lying surface.
"We wanted a more sustainable solution and opted for rubber mats. The initial investment is significant, but there are no ongoing costs afterward."
The feed pads were planned and implemented together with our expert KRAIBURG dealer NumatAGRI Located next to the milking shed, the feed pads allow cows to walk directly from feeding to milking. The cows eat their silage in the feed pads, where they can stand and lie dry and comfortably. The system is very simple and requires minimal maintenance. Enhanced safety, improved hoof health, and the preservation of pasturelands are the outcomes of this project.
"We love this design. It's so simple. You don’t need robots or other specialized equipment. There’s basically nothing that can break."
What’s next?
During winter, the cows will stay on the feed pads during the day and be fed corn and grass silage to prevent wet hooves. If the Borrie family has a positive experience with the new system in the coming winter, they are likely to equip their other two farms with feed pads as well.
But see for yourself what they look like in practice!
