The proposed Southern Dairy Hub has the green light to go ahead after local farmers pledged more than $1 million.

The hub - a commercial demonstration farm facility working to farming in the region - has approval from industry partners Dairy New Zealand and AgResearch to proceed.

It's received more than 500 pledges from farmers, with more than one million-dollars committed to the project.

Southern Dairy Development Trust chair Matthew Richards says the next step is to buy farm land, to develop infrastructure.

He says they hope to be milking cows by June next year.