Lincoln University and Taupō dairy company Miraka have signed a ‘100-year’ memorandum of understanding (MOU).

The partnership, the first of its kind in New Zealand, will provide a real-world farming context to test new practices, said a release on the partnership.

Research areas will include Aotearoa-specific regenerative agriculture approaches, emerging agroecosystem and livestock production science, new technologies, and mātauranga Māori (Māori world view) approaches to land management.

“The aim of the partnership is to build resilience within the New Zealand farming community,” said Miraka chief executive officer Richard Wyeth.

“Over the coming years, farmers will continue to face significant challenges, including adaptation to changing climate conditions and regulation.”

The partnership with Lincoln meant the company was taking an active role in finding solutions for the next 100 years of farming, he said.

The university’s acting vice-chancellor Professor Bruce McKenzie said the specialist land-based university was committed to using partnerships to solve some of the world’s pressing land-based challenges.

The partnership would allow Lincoln University students and academics “to test innovative and multi-dimensional ideas in a real-world context on Miraka farms,” said Professor Pablo Gregorini, head of Lincoln’s Centre of Excellence for Designing Future Productive Landscapes.

Such research could lead to significant improvements in farming, as well as social and cultural ecosystems.

“By working with Miraka we can show tangible outcomes to the agricultural sector and urban communities as a whole, helping to drive real mindset and practical changes,” said Gregorini.

Lincoln Assistant Vice-Chancellor Māori and Pasifika, Dr Dione Payne, saw the partnership as progress towards the university’s plan to support the Māori economy.

“This arrangement demonstrates our desire to partner with Māori leaders of innovation and excellence in the primary industries, qualities that Miraka have demonstrated since they first began operating.”

Source: Stuff.co.nz