Prof McNamara, from Washington State University, USA, will speak about the latest advances in nutrition and reproduction and their practical application for dairy cows.

“Genetics, nutrition and reproduction are intimately linked, so we need to research them together if we want to make real advances in dairy herd productivity,” Prof McNamara said.

He is confident his vision can be achieved with the use of two new research approaches – nutrigenetics and nutrigenomics.

Together they look at how nutrition affects the expression of genes and how a cow’s genes affect it’s response to diet.

“We now have the research tools to define the mechanisms that connect nutrition, genetics and reproduction,” Prof McNamara said.

"So we are on the way to understanding why some very high producing cows manage to get in calf and what we can do to ensure more cows achieve both high production and fertility."

Prof McNamara is just one of a number of international speakers at the symposium, which also includes Dr Fernando Bargo, Elanco, South America, and Associate Prof. Ian Yule, Massey University, NZ, plus local researchers, consultants and dairyfarmers.

The theme for the 2-day symposium is ‘Feeding for the Future,’ covering four main areas feeding for maximum dry matter intake, feeding for maximum profit, feeding and reproduction and feeding in the future.

Held at the University of Sydney’s new Liz Kernohan Conference Centre at Camden on September 16 and 17, the program includes technical sessions, a farm visit to see technology in action, and an annual dinner.

* Details: www.vetsci.usyd.edu.au/foundation s/drf/symposium.shtml.