BOVINA, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) – The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service announced that its 2023 Southwest Dairy Day will take place on Wednesday in the Bovina area, with a field day highlighting new technologies in the dairy production field.

Organizers said that the Dairy Day event will run from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the intersection of County Road 11 and Texas State Highway 86 near Bovina, and will also include bus tours to the Del Rio Dairy running from 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.

The tours, said organizers, will include three stops at the anaerobic digester, Saudi barns and rotary milking parlor. Those tours contribute to the event’s aim to highlight technologies such as the anaerobic digester and rotary parlor with automation.

“The use of rotary milking parlors is common to see in large dairy farms, and adding automatic pre- and post-dipping technologies to these parlors could save labor,” said Dr. Jennifer Spence, AgriLife Extension dairy specialist, Stephenville.

“The use of anaerobic digesters is a hot topic nowadays because it may help in reducing the carbon footprint and could be used as a renewable fuel to help dairy farmers diversify their income,” said Juan Pieiro, DVM, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension dairy specialist, Amarillo, “I expect there will be many dairy farmers interested in attending this event to learn more about the opportunities and challenges with this technology.”

Organizers noted that the event relies on allied industry support. Pieiro said they are grateful for the support they have received, and noted that registration for the free event is also now open here.