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The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service has recently announced the investment of up to $310 million for producer conservation practices across the U.S. through its Regional Conservation Partnership Program. This farmer-first program is focusing on conservation activities in regard to soil health, water quality, and wildlife habitat improvements.

Dairy farmers have always been committed to sustainability, particularly in terms of productivity and profitability, as stewards of their land and animals to preserve the longevity of their farm for future generations to come. Supply chain companies also focus on their footprint, specifically in terms of their various scopes of emissions. Strong partnerships between food companies and their dairy farms are crucial to help mitigate the risks of adopting new on-farm technologies to lower a dairy’s footprint while remaining economically viable.

The American Biogas Council released new data showing an increase in the number of American dairies recycling their manure into renewable energy using biogas capture systems of which encompass 16 billion gallons of manure from 2.5 million dairy cows, while preventing about 1 million tons of methane emissions. With close to $4 billion invested into dairy biogas projects since 2020, this opens the door for more farms to turn their manure into renewable energy and natural fertilizer while substantial untapped potential remains across the U.S.

With synthetic fertilizer costs on the rise, manure becomes an even more precious resource of nutrients for crops. Often paying for itself, manure testing can be a feasible way to see where and which nutrients can be credited when used as a fertilizer. Manure is a valuable resource with much more value to be gained when its contents are understood and used effectively.

Goodrich Farm in Salisbury, Vermont, a 2021 Outstanding Dairy Farm Sustainability Award recipient, shares their sustainability journey to implement a digester on their farm. Throughout the process, the Goodrich family learned valuable lessons as to what worked best for their operation, from planning to reality. Not only does the digester help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on the dairy, but the facility also provides fertilizer cost savings and water quality benefits.

After nearly a decade of development by Dairy Management Inc., USDA, and others, the Ruminant Farm Systems (RuFaS) model has been released. RuFaS can benefit farms through the FARM Environmental Stewardship program by providing a “what if” analysis before taking a potential risk in implementing a new technology or practice. Using a tailored, whole-farm approach, RuFaS simulates how changes in management influence productivity and environmental outcomes to provide guidance in confident decision making for farms.

The Dairy Soil & Water Regeneration project released a new webinar series, Assessing the Health of Dairy Forage Fields: Insights from the Dairy Soil & Water Regeneration Project. The first webinar in the series focused on Wisconsin’s Driftless Region and highlighted results from a soil health baseline survey conducted on commercial farms in the area. Featuring regional experts representing researchers, the dairy supply chain, and Wisconsin dairy farmers, the webinar showcased the impact of cover crops and reduced tillage on soil health along with opportunities for continued progress.

The annual Dairy Sustainability Alliance Spring meeting drew in over 260 dairy value chain partners, including farmers, to discuss shared priorities and progress. Among the various discussion topics of health and nutrition, on farm practicality and economic viability, measuring progress, and understanding farmers’ perspectives, the overall message remained the same — what makes the dairy industry stand out from others is its shared responsibility and aligned execution to power its momentum.

Dairy Soil & Water Regeneration researcher, Dr. Mara Cloutier of the Soil Health Institute, and Wisconsin dairy farmer participant, Jack Herricks, sit down with Stephanie Hoff of the Mid-West Farm Report to discuss the project’s collaboration with commercial dairy farms in key dairy states across the country to collect real-world data. This collected data, including that on Herricks’ farm, was crucial in the project’s benchmarking campaign to quantify the current state of soil health and carbon stock of soils that receive dairy manure and provide forages for dairies.

Composted manure can be used as a valuable soil amendment, or when dry enough, an economical bedding material for dairy cows. When composting, the basic principles can often be overlooked, but they are crucial to proper management. An adequate balance of moisture, carbon to nitrogen ratio, temperature, size, and oxygen levels allow for optimal microbial activity and a mature compost product.