Polije Lecturer Finishes Australia Awards Feed Management Course

Politeknik Negeri Jember (Polije) achieved another academic milestone through a lecturer from the Animal Husbandry Department, Ir. Agus Hadi Prayitno, S.Pt., M.Sc., IPM. He successfully completed the prestigious Australia Awards Short Course on Pasture, Feed and Water Management Practices to Improve Dairy Livestock Productivity.

The program took place in three stages: a Pre-Course in Malang (May 26–28, 2025), the main course in Brisbane, Australia (July 14–25, 2025), and a Post-Course Workshop in Bandung (September 30 – October 2, 2025).

During the training, Agus Hadi underwent intensive lectures and field visits to research facilities and pasture-based dairy farms in Brisbane, Gympie, and Cairns. He also participated in mentoring sessions, innovation project presentations, and international networking activities in the field of tropical animal husbandry.

In the final session in Bandung, he presented a project titled “Enhancing Student Competence through Strengthening Learning Materials on Forage and Dairy Livestock Production.” The project aims to enrich the Polije Animal Husbandry curriculum with materials based on Australian best practices.

“The experience of directly observing Australia’s sustainable tropical livestock strategies will be integrated into the curriculum and into strengthening student competencies at the Polije Animal Husbandry Department,” said Agus Hadi.

Program participants gained exclusive learning access at livestock research centers like UQ Gatton Dairy Research Facility, as well as commercial farms utilizing pasture-based, Partial Mixed Ration (PMR), and Full TMR systems. They also studied the use of Rumen8 nutrition software, feed efficiency, water management, and strategies for handling tropical climate and milk market conditions.

Agus affirmed that the application of this knowledge will be focused on the Livestock Production and Animal Feed Technology programs and Polije’s Dairy Cattle Teaching Factory. This aims to enhance student readiness to face the modern livestock industry.

“This is not the end, but the beginning of a real contribution to the future of superior and competitive Indonesian dairy farming,” he concluded.