By Jim Massey
Freelance writer
Victor Cabrera, a professor and dairy farm management specialist in the Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences, was a keynote presenter at the second Agricultural International Conference on Innovation for Resilient Agriculture in Chiang Mai, Thailand, on Feb. 6. (https://www.agri.cmu.ac.th/iracmu/).
Cabrera and other College of Agricultural and Life Sciences officials were in Thailand in February as part of a fact-finding mission to explore possible partnerships between UW-Madison and the Thai government. Thai officials hope UW-Madison dairy experts can provide assistance to help modernize the Thai dairy industry and make dairy farmers more efficient and resilient.
As Cabrera and other UW agricultural experts were discussing possible collaboration on dairy, officials at Chiang Mai University found Cabrera’s area of expertise interesting and asked him if he would present at the conference.
“I think it was a great opportunity to foster international relationships and open doors for potential partnerships, research collaborations, and knowledge exchange,” Cabrera says. “As the only presentation focused on dairy at the meeting, it provided a unique platform to showcase Wisconsin’s expertise in dairy science to a global audience. Strengthening these connections could ultimately bring valuable insights and innovations to benefit Wisconsin farmers.”
His presentation explored innovative strategies and technologies to build sustainable agricultural practices, with a focus on data-driven dairy farming. It highlighted the integration of data ecosystems, decision-support tools, and artificial intelligence (AI) as transformative elements in climate-smart agriculture.
The ADS department’s DairyBrain (https://DairyBrain.wisc.edu) and RuFaS (Ruminant Farm Systems; https://RuFaS.org) projects showcase the use of data integration and prescriptive analytics to improve feed efficiency, reduce nitrogen emissions and enhance herd health, Cabrera says.
“These tools provide actionable insights by combining data streams from genetics, weather, feed and herd records, demonstrating the transformative power of data-driven decision-making,” Cabrera says.
His presentation delved into cutting-edge research, including algorithms for predicting clinical mastitis, assessing lactation curves, and optimizing herd management using reinforcement learning. He said by leveraging AI tools like machine learning and computer vision, the dairy industry can enhance productivity while reducing its environmental footprint.
Cabrera’s call to action urged stakeholders to invest in scalable innovations, prioritize sustainability, and support data-driven solutions for a climate-resilient future.
“By fostering innovation and collaboration, the agricultural sector in general and dairy farming in particular can address the dual challenges of feeding a growing population and mitigating climate change,” Cabrera says. “I think this conference was a good step. It is good to compare a holistic view of the system. In (Southeast Asia) it makes sense to work on improving the production side while trying to keep up with emissions and decrease those at the same time.”
Cabrera says he received positive comments and notes from conference attendees after his presentation.
“The feedback was very positive about the work we are doing here at UW,” Cabrera says. “Knowing the audience at the conference, I aimed to make broader statements that apply to agriculture as a whole. The attendees are well aware of the challenges we face, and when I discussed the use of AI technology to enhance climate-smart practices, they found it particularly valuable.”
The international conference was primarily attended by people from Southeast Asia, but there were also representatives from the U.S., Germany, the Netherlands, France, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. The conference was organized by officials at Chiang Mai University, based in northern Thailand.