A new “dairy barn of the future” merges animal freedom, smart tech, and transparent research to redefine modern farming.

Family herds with access to open pastures rather than spending every day in crowded barns under social stress: a national research consortium, including Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences, the Friedrich Loeffler Institute (FLI), and the Research Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), is demonstrating how modern dairy farming can unite animal welfare, practical operation, and transparency.

What happens when cows are free to choose whether to stay indoors or go outside? When calves grow up alongside their mothers, and visitors can observe both the animals and the ongoing research without causing disruption? These questions are explored in the Invited Review titled “Dairy Barn of the Future,” recently published in theJournal of Dairy Science.

The concept centers on a family herd system that maintains cow-calf contact, offers a large free-lying area, provides year-round access to pastures or paddocks, integrates automation and sensor technology, and includes a visitor corridor for safely viewing daily barn life.

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“With this publication, we are presenting the concept in a comprehensive scientific manner – and highlighting the opportunities for research into animal welfare, resource efficiency and biosecurity, as well as for putting new concepts into practice. We are showing how animal welfare and modern agriculture go hand in hand. Dummerstorf is ideal for this – there are many research institutions here that deal with animal welfare, right next door to each other, pasture land borders the campus, and we have the building permit.

The digital barn simulation is ready – now we want to build the barn as a real-world laboratory together with partners,” says Prof. Dr. Lisa Bachmann, professor at Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences and research assistant at the FBN (project management).

Free choice, better life: how the “dairy barn of the future” works

The “dairy barn of the future” centers on maintaining cows and calves together in stable family herds, avoiding constant regrouping and fostering calm social interactions. The animals have autonomy—they can freely move between the barn, pasture, and winter paddock.

Inside, a spacious resting area with soft, ventilated bedding and integrated trees provides comfort, temperature regulation, and natural behavior. Automated milking systems and smart feeding technologies reduce employee workload, allow tailored feeding, and continuously record health and behavioral data.

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A surrounding visitor corridor offers a window into barn life for research, education, and guided tours without compromising biosecurity. The system merges practical operations with advanced data collection, supporting animal welfare, efficient daily work, and transparent research conditions. It enables long-term studies under real-world circumstances, advancing both science and sustainable agriculture.

Dummerstorf: Competence campus with pasture connection

Dummerstorf combines everything this real-world laboratory needs in a small space: the research site is located in the immediate vicinity of the FBN, state research facilities, the Friedrich Loeffler Institute, the University of Rostock, and the Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences – expertise in behavior, animal welfare, veterinary medicine/epidemiology, and agricultural technology all come together here.

Pasture land borders the campus, giving the cows genuine freedom of choice without long driveways. In addition, the project team is ready in terms of building regulations: the building permit has been obtained, the digital barn simulation has been completed, and the construction has been planned in detail. Existing herds, laboratories, and data interfaces ensure rapid commissioning and reliable research.

In short, Dummerstorf offers short distances, reliable infrastructure, and a unique bundle of expertise – the prerequisites for realizing the “dairy barn of the future” together with practice- s and transfer partners are met. After the federal government cancelled funding for the construction, an alternative financing option is now to be found.

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Play. Test. Build.: The “dairy barn of the future” as a simulation

The interactive barn simulation is complete – a digital trial run that allows processes, space requirements, feeding, milking routes, and visitor guidance to be simulated realistically. As with a “playable prototype,” variants can be tested, bottlenecks identified, and improvements tried out immediately – before a single spadeful of earth is turned. The planning is well thought out in terms of construction and operation.

The project team is currently looking for partners from the fields of practice, politics, and society who are willing to take the step from digital twin to reality. The planned demonstration and research barn will be used to conduct long-term studies under practical conditions – on animal health and behavior, emissions, work organization, and social acceptance. This will lay the foundation for measurable progress for animals, humans, and the environment.

Reference: “Invited review: Development of a dairy barn concept to improve animal welfare” by R. Wulf, S. Demba, V. Röttgen, J. Langbein, S. Düpjan, B. Weise, S. Rose, A. Sixt, J.

Harms, I. Steinhöfel, H.-S. Bruckert, P.A. Guhl, M. Heppelmann, S. Jahn, M.J. Oettler, T. Homeier-Bachmann and L. Bachmann, 20 August 2025,Journal of Dairy Science.
DOI: 10.3168/jds.2025-26627

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Funding: The development of the “dairy barn of the future” was part of the project “Innovations for healthy and ‘happy’ cows” (06/2021 – 05/2025) and was funded by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (BMLEH) on the basis of a resolution of the German Bundestag. The project is managed by the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE).

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