The Somerset-based dairy brand has measured its farm to spoon greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from rearing and milking cows to distributing pots of yogurt and bottles of milk, to the fridge door. The brand has measured the carbon footprint assessment of its scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions with the Research Institute of Sweden, including over 150 of the brand’s products.

With farming directly responsible for 10% of UK national greenhouse gas emissions, Yeo Valley Organic believes carbon sequestration in soils through regenerative organic farming offers enormous potential to reduce atmospheric carbon levels, which are driving ongoing global warming. Yeo Valley Organic owner Tim Mead said: “Helping to regenerate the world’s soil carbon stocks is one of our greatest opportunities to help combat climate change. The work we’re doing on our own and our supply farms is all about weaponising soil. As farmers and custodians of the soil, it’s time to recognise that our natural ally is right under our feet.”

This follows the conclusion of a successful five-year soil carbon testing pilot at Yeo Valley Organic’s own farm in Somerset, where data showed that by using regenerative organic methods the soil carbon stocks on the family farm is equivalent to 150 years’ worth of the farm’s emissions. This was measured in detailed soil sampling including over 1,300 soil samples taken at three different depths, over 2,000 acres. The company reports significant annual increases of soil carbon each year over a five-year period between 2015 – 2020. Yeo Valley Organic believes this is particularly valuable data, as it’s been achieved using real regenerative organic farm practices as opposed to replicated or randomised trials – making soil carbon sequestration a valuable alternative to the practice of offsetting.

Tim adds: “Carbon offsetting isn’t for us, and we only considered ourselves to be truly regenerative organic farmers once we began to start increasing our soil carbon stocks. After all, soils store more carbon than the atmosphere, and all of the world’s plants and forests combined. The results at our own farm are hugely encouraging and demonstrate why we’re so passionate about the way we farm. We want to prove that organic soil presents a big opportunity in helping to combat the effects of climate change. That’s why we’ve committed to running the ReGeneration Project, which will extend testing across our supplier farms and support them to make a positive impact on locking-in carbon.”

The Yeo Valley Organic ReGeneration Project will facilitate the UK’s most comprehensive research into organic regenerative agriculture principles. The company will be able to share soil carbon sequestration ‘best practice’ with its 100+ supplying farmers and with the support of the farmer led social enterprise the Farm Carbon Toolkit (FCT), quantify its success by accurately measuring the increase in soil carbon over a defined period.

Farm Carbon Toolkit technical director Becky Willson said: “There is considerable scope for dairy farmers to be part of the climate solution through engaging in the soil health agenda. A key part of achieving change is measuring the current carbon stock and evaluating the impact of management in improving soil carbon sequestration. This is a project that Yeo Valley Organic are pioneering bringing together robust science and measurement on the carbon levels within the soil and farmer engagement and advice to identify improvements which will sequester additional carbon.

“Gathering data over the next 10 years will build up knowledge on how a transition to regenerative organic dairy farming can really benefit our soil, our planet, our farmers and our food production. We don’t have all the answers when it comes to soil carbon, but this is the start of vital work which explores the impact of soil health on our climate crisis and guides the actions of future farmers.”

Regenerative farming methods will drive a big part of the positive change at Yeo Valley Organic, with a number of future plans on the table including ambitions to create one of the UK’s largest areas of agroforestry (integrating trees, forage and the grazing of animals in a mutually beneficial way) in 600 acres of woodland in Somerset; and experiments with Biochar for onward use by growers and gardeners for a closed loop approach.

It also has several workstreams planned around composting, mob grazing, biodiverse planting and herbal leys, to increase the knowledge of regenerative organic principles and its effects on increasing carbon stocks in the soil.

With the commitment to a carbon reduction programme in 2022, there will also be continued work on solar energy projects, hydrogen lorries, electric vehicles and packaging. The brand was the first in the UK dairy industry to introduce a yogurt pot made from 100% recycled and recyclable material. Yeo Valley has also installed more than 3,300 solar panels at its Somerset distribution centre. The £1 million installation is the company’s third major solar project growing its renewable energy production, with a further £5 million being spent over the next five years.

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The first step is to set up a pilot programme, which was developed in cooperation with experts for regenerative agriculture of consulting company FAI Farms and other specialist organisations. There are 24 selected pilot operations in five countries, including Germany, Denmark, UK, the Netherlands and Sweden, which will be trained in the application of various regenerative methods in the future for the next four years. These are conventional farmers, who operate pasture or pure stables and organised organic farmers.

Arla in-house experts as well as external experts from FAI Farms, a research and consulting company in the agricultural and food sector, will train the pilot farmers to regenerate their businesses. Farmers will help to collect data and evaluate various methods to understand, what impact their work can have on ground health, carbon binding, biodiversity, ecosystem processes, the profitability of the operation and the well-being of farmers. Their experiences as well as the collected data should provide insights on how renewable methods can be applied to various systems of dairy cattle companies in Europe, and how they affect the climate and nature.

The second step concerns 916 Europe-wide organic farmers of the cooperative, which together produce a billion kg of organic milk in a year. From this year, the Arla organic farmers will evaluate and register their measures in the field of biodiversity once a year. This allows appropriate data to be collected.

In addition, the organic farmers collect soil samples analysed by an external laboratory to determine an output value for the soil carbon of the respective operation. The organic farmers also ensure that there are a series of measures for ground health and biodiversity in their businesses. And they have access to a catalog of measures that contains information about how to achieve and measure improvements.

From 2022, the organic farmers will evaluate indicators of ground health themselves, such as testing the flooring and the number of existing earthworms.

“As a dairy owned by farmers, we have a great deal of interest in which we reduce the negative effects of the dairy industry and maximise the positive. A number of our farmers have been dealing with practices of regenerative agriculture for some time. Because of the enthusiasm, we have decided to pursue a broader approach as a cooperative, which is cited by the organic farmers and some pilot farms,” says farmer Walter Lausen, who is a German member of the supervisory board of Arla Foods and chairman of the Organic Council for the Central Europe region.

Regenerative agriculture has gained attention from producers, retail, research and consumers, particularly as one of the answers to the double challenge of climate change and the loss of biodiversity. There is a general consensus that improving ground health and biodiversity are core elements of regenerative agriculture. At the same time, there is no generally recognised definition of this approach.

In addition, there are only a few, scientific examples of regenerative methods in the dairy industry in which farmers can now orientate. Arla Foods wants to help close this data gap by using the experience and knowledge of its farmers.

“Our goal is to obtain data-based evidence for the successful use of regenerative methods in dairy farming. While we focus on reducing the negative effects of our work, the positive effect we can obtain as farmers on our areas is not yet thoroughly proven scientifically. We want to gain more scientifically sound findings so that dairy farmers can take the right measures for the future,” Lausen says.

Claire Hill, director of Regenerative Agriculture at FAI Farms, is looking forward to participating in the project and access to the data of the 24 pilot enterprises and the soil samples of the 916 organic farms of Arla Foods.

“Arla is the biggest partner from the milk sector, with which we work together in the field of regenerative agriculture. There is no pilot programme in the industry so comprehensive. The exciting thing is that we will work together with farmers in different countries. Every company is unique and the collected data is very enlightening. We can make our knowledge of how a transition to a regenerative agriculture can look great and significantly expand through the associated challenges and benefits. This will help us to understand, how more farmers can take this path,” says Hill.

Measures that Arla will implement in 2021 on its organic farms:

Soil health:

• An assessment of the carbon content in the ground to provide a starting point for the measurement of further improvements of carbon content. The soil samples are examined by an external laboratory, among other things, the following key figures: organic substance, organic carbon, total carbon, total nitrogen and the carbon-nitrogen ratio.
• At least 5 out of 22 ground health measures must be present in the enterprises.
• From 2022: annual self-control of indicators for ground health, such as testing the floor noise and the number of earthworms.

Biodiversity:

• An annual self-control of the measures in four areas to maintain biodiversity.
• At least 7 out of 33 measures for the maintenance of biodiversity must be present in each operation.

Arla would like to reach the new network of 24 pilot companies in five countries:

• All pilot enterprises receive training and personal support through experts for regenerative agriculture.
• Measurement, observation and documentation of the impact of renewable agricultural measures on the ecosystems of pilot businesses.
• Understand and document possible behavioral changes in pilot companies.
• Build knowledge about what regenerative agriculture in the dairy industry and how this looks concretely; learn from a variety of management systems and countries.
• Exchange of knowledge and findings through specialist discussions, case studies and project progress reports.
• Combine the knowledge of farmers with the knowledge of the external experts to identify common regenerative principles and practices that could be taken over by the Arla farmers on a large scale.

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The group of industrial, agricultural and research partners, led by the sustainability consultancy Sofies, seeks to transform the greenhouse gas removal market at pace by creating the first integrated biochar network consisting of BSW, one of the largest forestry and sawmilling businesses in the UK and Arla Foods, which has 2,400 farmer owners based in the UK. Using co-products arising from the sawmilling industry, BSW can create biochar through a process called pyrolysis. The Biochar can then be used on Arla farms, either by mixing it with slurry prior to application on fields or through bedding systems (both options will be assessed in the project).

Biochar is a highly stable form of carbon produced by heating biomass in a low-oxygen environment through pyrolysis. The process takes the carbon sequestered by the trees and converts it into biochar in a pyrolysis unit, which can then be distributed to farms and stored in the soil for over 500 years. Benefits include:

• Providing long-term carbon storage: Biochar is a safe way to rapidly increase soil carbon without changing land use.
• Greenhouse gas emissions reduction: This can be achieved through the interaction between biochar and slurry in the field, which will lessen nitrification and resultant emissions.
• Ammonia and odour reduction: Biochar can be used as a sorbent in bedding. It will dry out the bedding and the manure, which will in turn reduce ammonia emissions.
• The improvement of soil functions: Studies have shown that biochar amendment can improve soil health and fertiliser use efficiency.

The consortium is supported by some of the best industrial and research bodies in the UK and Germany including Newcastle University, University of Edinburgh, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), Biomacon and R&S Biomass. They believe that the reason for the commercial failure of biochar to date largely boils down to the business model, not the technology. Their early estimates suggest that 2.1–3.6 t CO2e could be removed per tonne of biochar used on farms, meaning that if the trial is scaled up across Arla UK farms, the potential for carbon removal could be an estimated 57,150 t CO2 removal by 2030. That’s the equivalent of the annual electricity emissions from 10,000 homes, or the annual exhaust emissions of roughly 12,500 cars.

The Direct Air Capture and Greenhouse Gas Removal Technologies competition is run by Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and sits as part of the government’s Net Zero Innovation Portfolio. As one of 24 projects in Phase One of the competition, the consortium will now move to identify roughly ten Arla farms to help develop the concept of a low cost biochar network and assess the feasibility of the idea. If the feasibility study is deemed successful, BEIS will award the project Phase Two status, where the system would be funded by BEIS and demonstrated on farms. Phase Two is expected to begin in the first half of 2022.

Alice Swift, director of Agriculture at Arla Foods, comments: “We’re delighted that the potential use of biochar to capture carbon has been recognised by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. As we have learnt through our Arla farm innovation programme, new technologies must be trialled by farmers to establish them as practical and affordable solutions. Financial support for farmers to do this is essential. Our consortium includes farmers, scientists, economists and multiple industries all working together. This integrated approach to climate solutions will play an essential part in scaling up future working practice that drive circular economies and remove carbon and other greenhouse gases at scale.”

The biochar used in this ground-breaking project will be manufactured using wood chips from the UK’s largest integrated forestry and sawmilling business, BSW Timber.

BSW is the largest producer of sawn timber products in the country and utilises the whole log, with co-products – the bark, chip, sawdust and shavings – ensuring nothing goes to waste.

Tilhill, the UK’s leading forestry management company, is part of the BSW Group. Tilhill’s managing director Gavin Adkins comments: “We’re particularly excited to be part of this project as it rounds off what is now a completely circular offering. We often work alongside farmers to plant trees on their land and manage those woodlands to sequester carbon, and once those trees have reached maturity and been harvested we can now use the co-products – in this case the wood chip – to add carbon back to the land in the form of biochar. This is an important first step and one we already hope can be replicated on a larger scale, with the backing of our expertise and many manufacturing sites across the country.”

Arla owner and farmer David McMiken comments: “Most Arla Farmers are already measuring their carbon footprint through Arla’s Climate Check programme with the data showing Arla farmers produce milk with around half the emissions of global dairy production. Game changing innovations such as biochar will be welcomed by farmers providing they are affordable to work with. Personally, I welcome this approach from the Government which could have significant impact in bridging the gap between the potential of new technologies and the economic realities of farming. After all, at the heart of most farmers is the desire to produce the best possible food made in the most sustainable way so that the land is looked after for the generations of farmers to come.”

Having been granted Phase One funding in the Direct Air Capture and Greenhouse Gas Removal Technologies competition, Arla will now ask its 2,400 UK farmer owners to volunteer to participate in the feasibility trial over the next six months. The process will look at what would be required of all parties to establish the biochar network with the intent of having a feasible model ready for trial and eligible for funding in Phase Two of the Government competition.

Arla farmers can register support at farming@arla.co.uk or find more information on the Arla owners website.

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The first was the two cows falling into the water in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, where the first floating urban dairy farm is located and has been opering since 2019. The cow being winched out of the water does not look impressed in the photo on Farminguk.com. The second was that the director of Avatar, James Cameron, is said to have quietly turned his organic vegetable farm, which he bought from a dairy farmer in New Zealand several years ago, back into grazing for cattle.

The first item shows that you can never tell with animals. I do not know how the cows wound up in the drink, but shifting them back and forth across gangplanks is well, a tricky business. I like the idea behind urban centres providing their own supply for feeding the population, but as we all march towards the future of farming, there are bound to be a few animals falling into the water, especially as the level rises over the years. It is something to think about. I am happy it’s the Dutch who are doing this – they know a lot about dealing with both rising water levels and cows. The expertise will benefit us all.

The second item is a bit of a funny one, and it’s really about using the land most productively to feed a growing population. People like to say that turning over all the animal-based pasture to crop agriculture will be the way forward. But as any farmer will tell you, that just isn’t so.

As you remove animals from the land, and turn over that soil for crops, you are destabilizing it. Now, in soils like my allotment, that’s not an issue. I plant, I add compost, I go from there. But if you do that with land that is already not the most stable (say, grasslands), you’re just inviting poor conditions. A lot of grassland really isn’t great for growing anything but grass, and a lot of fertilizer may have to be added to grow them. Thin topsoil blows away. Also, where does that fertilizer come from, if you take animals out of the equation? Putting cows on grassland makes more sense. They take the nutrients from the grass but leave the ground structures intact.

I am sure there are simulators, and I know there are people who are more knowledgeable than me discussing this whole very complex process (www.un.org/en/food-systems-summit). What is interesting about all of this is it’s a bit like playing Jenga. You never know how removing one piece is going to make the whole thing collapse.

• Suzanne Christiansen, editor, Dairy Industries International.
  Keep in touch via email: suzanne@bellpublishing.com
  Twitter: @dairyindustries or LinkedIn: Dairy Industries International magazine.

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Supported by Morrisons, with co-partner RAFT Solutions Ltd, the school will draw on academic and practical expertise, as well as industry networks, to develop knowledge and skills for farmers and other businesses in the supply chain, who are committed to reducing the environmental impact of food production.

Professor Michael Lee, Harper Adams deputy vice-chancellor, said: “We are extremely excited to team up with Morrisons and RAFT Solutions to deliver this critically-needed collaboration which will support the transition to a more sustainable food system delivering to both human and planetary health.

“The initial targets will be centred around how to achieve net-zero UK agriculture. However, the ambition of the school will include wider aspects of sustainability including biodiversity, animal welfare, rural community support, green energy production and farm profitability.”

The school will support and further develop production systems research geared towards more sustainable farming. Research topics initially will include: livestock breed choice, diet composition, yield improvement, agricultural building design, on-farm renewable energy, precision farming, sensors and use of data.

Using knowledge from the research, the school will seek to develop practical advice and guidance to help farmers adjust their practices to be more sustainable. RAFT Solutions Ltd will play a key role in developing practical skills training associated with animal breeding and health.

Professor Jonathan Statham, chief executive of RAFT Solutions Ltd and professor of Sustainable Livestock Health and Welfare at the Harper & Keele Vet School, said: “We are incredibly proud to support Morrisons in its net-zero ambition, which is true to the very core of RAFT’s activity and the vision for Harper & Keele Vet School to make a real difference at farm level with practical and achievable solutions to the sustainability challenge.

“The pressures on farming and farmers are intense but there are win-win opportunities where better animal health and welfare are better economically as well as better for the planet. Reducing the waste of poor health and reproductive inefficiency alongside delivering practical precision livestock farming (PLF) solutions is where our work supports sustainable farming.”

Sophie Throup, head of Agriculture at Morrisons, said: “We are making a significant investment into this project as part of our pledge to be the first supermarket to be directly supplied by net zero carbon British farms by 2030. We look forward to working as a partnership and to bringing the best brains together within the industry – to provide this new breadth of sustainability training for our British farmers.”

The school will also provide a platform from which relevant research can be translated and scaled to assist the entire food value chain.

Capital investment in real farming projects will enable direct farming engagement with the school, for the benefit of all. Work placements, apprenticeships and other workforce development initiatives are also being considered to support the need for future sustainable food and farming professionals.

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SalzburgMilch has, together with independent experts, developed an animal health initiative. Regular animal health checks of all dairy cows, a dairy veterinarian who advises farming families and an animal health advisory board are just a few aspects of this initiative.

“Explaining all aspects of our animal health initiative in a commercial would go beyond the scope. That is, why we use short questions or concise headlines to arouse our consumers’ attention to this important topic. The detailed information can then be read in detail on our homepage,” explains Florian Schwap, marketing manager at SalzburgMilch.

The dairy also highlights messages about environmental protection and sustainability in its advertising. The dairy has started a variety of measures such as changing the yogurt, sour cream and whipped cream cups to cardboard-coated cups and using cardboard for its cheese slice packaging. All these measures have saved  the dairy more than 130 tons of plastic since 2017.

“In our TV spots we combine everything, which is particularly important to us: animal health, sustainability and enjoyment. And at the end we will present our new products such as the premium breakfast hay milk – from cows with 365 days of exercise a year – or the sustainable cheese slice packaging,” Schwap says.

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“Without milk we cannot produce cheese, butter and quark. No milk can be produced without farmers. Without the animals, especially the cows, there is no milk, which we can process. The animals need their habitat and food. It goes without saying that we do everything to protect and look after nature and everything that goes with it. Because we know that we cannot exist without nature. We live environmental protection and sustainability – every day,” says CEO Hubert Dennenmoser.

The dairy group has been EMAS certified since 2015. EMAS is an eco-audit for companies developed by the European Union.

The Allmikäs has its own thermal power station and the entire roof area of the newest warehouse at the HQ is equipped with a photovoltaic system. The dairy also has joint energy generation with the other companies, which is why the energy requirement has fallen by around 20-30% and is therefore lower than that of comparable companies.

As many other dairies, it has a system for heat recovery, which uses the waste heat from various heat sources.

Almost all of the measures, which have contributed to reducing energy consumption and thus also reducing greenhouse gases, were originally measures to improve economy, but have had many environmental benefits too.

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Beverage cartons already have strong environmental credentials when compared with plastic bottles. A 2018 Life Cycle Assessment showed that in the case of UHT milk, cartons result in 70.7 per cent less CO2 emissions and in the case of fresh milk 83.6 per cent less CO2 emissions in comparison to disposable PET bottles, according to a 2018 study by the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (IFEU) in Germany.

One of the latest innovations to gain traction in packaging is the Natural Brown Board carton from Elopak. These are a rustic take on the company’s iconic Pure-Pak cartons, made with one less layer to allow the natural colour of the wood fibres to shine through. Having launched in 2017, today approximately 20 per cent of the Pure-Pak milk cartons Elopak sells in Western Europe are produced with natural brown board.

Elopak’s Pure-Pak cartons made with natural brown board make even further advances on this inherent sustainability. They are renewable, recyclable and have a lower carbon footprint than conventional cartons, owing to reduced wood consumption and the elimination of the bleaching process. Their rustic, natural look effectively communicates this commitment to sustainability and instantly stands out on the shelves, according to the company.

“Our customers are very responsive to consumers’ desire to reduce their environmental impact. A lot of them offer organic, green or otherwise sustainable products and they want a packaging solution that reflects this ethos and signals their commitment to the environment,” Elopak’s chief marketing officer (CMO) Patrick Verhelst explains.

“The Natural Brown Board has set a new standard for ecologic milk and plant-based drinks,” Verhelst continues.

No more caps

Some brands are going further and removing the plastic caps on their cartons. In 2020 Sweden’s second-largest dairy Skånemejerier was among those to make the change.

Skånemejerier decided to remove the caps on all its Hjordnära organic milk one liter cartons, and then let sales figures and consumer reactions determine whether the change should be permanent.

The dairy launched its organic milk in new Pure-Pak cartons with an easy opening funnel feature to replace the plastic closure.

“There are differences of opinion about the screw cap. Some consumers prefer the convenience of closure while others prefer to avoid plastic. So, we decided to put it to the test and remove the plastic caps and ask the consumers their opinions,” says Cecilia Lindwall, marketing manager at Skånemejerier.

Consumers who contacted the dairy via social media and its customer service department overwhelmingly preferred the new closure, with 79 per cent expressing a preference for packaging without the plastic screw top.

“This result is exactly what we were hoping for. It is gratifying to see that consumers prioritise sustainability over convenience. Removing the plastic cap reduces the climate impact of packaging, and it also makes it easier for consumers to recycle” explains Lindwall.

“Our vision is to be Sweden’s most sustainable dairy and to minimise the amount of material in our packaging,” she adds.

Plastic initiative

Last year Skånemejerier signed the Plastic Initiative. The initiative aligns with the European Commission’s plastics strategy, which states that by 2030 all plastic packaging on the EU market can be reused or recycled. The signatories pledge to meet the target within two years. Skånemejerier is approaching this goal as its packaging is already 96 per cent recyclable.

ECO organic milk range is the highest quality milk from Skånemejerier, and the launch of the new cartons with natural brown board and no plastic cap brings more sustainability to its most natural product.

The carton is certified carbon neutral, and the brown board uses fewer materials for a lighter package with lower carbon emissions. Skånemejerier plans to launch more products in Pure-Pak cartons with no plastic cap.

Since its launch, Elopak’s Natural Brown Board has served as a platform for further sustainability-focused innovations, including the Pure-Pak Imagine launched in 2020. The carton is a modern version of the company’s original Pure-Pak carton, containing 46 per cent less plastic and designed with a new easy open feature. It has no plastic screw cap and is 100 per cent forest-based made with natural brown board, making it Elopak’s most environmentally friendly carton to date.

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The focus of the work at the German university is the use of superheated steam to enable the recovery or further use of enthalpy of evaporation through steam condensation. In particular, it is looking at the design of the flow guidance in the spray tower as well as a quick discharge of the powder from the high temperature zone.

It also plans to investigate the effects of the increased temperature load and drying speed on the product quality compared to conventional spray drying.

An average of around 400,000 tons of skimmed milk powder is currently spray-dried in Germany each year in the dairy industry. If this amount is taken as a basis, it can be assumed that at least twice the energy savings potential for food powder in general.

With 400,000 tons and a dry matter content of 50% in the spray solution, there is a potential savings of several kilotons of carbon dioxide emissions per year. According to calculations, this would be around 20kt of carbon emissions equivalent per year for skimmed milk powder alone (based on natural gas as an energy source when using a combined heat and power plant) and correspondingly to approximately 40kt carbon emissions per year for the entire German food sector.

Since only the enthalpy of evaporation was taken into account in these calculations, there would be additional savings in the area of exhaust gas losses, compared to the current standard, which is offset by increased process implementation.

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One area of particular interest is the reduction in nitrogen output by feeding low protein diets. This is due to the high and volatile cost of purchased feeds such as soyabean meal, along with their associated environmental costs. The recent DEFRA Clean Air Strategy (2019) also identified that 88% of ammonia emissions in the UK were from agriculture, with 28% of these due to dairy cattle.

The Harper Adams University researchers have been focussing on home-grown forage legumes such as red clover, lucerne and forage pea silages. These forages are of interest because they are higher in protein than traditional feeds such as grass silage, and therefore require less supplementary protein to be fed. They also have the added benefit of not requiring artificial fertiliser nitrogen as they naturally fix it from the atmosphere.

“Only about 25% of the protein that a dairy cow consumes ends up in the milk, but by lowering the protein in the diet to 15% we were able to increase this to 35%”, said Liam Sinclair, Professor of Animal Science at Harper Adams, leader of the research programme. “This is a tremendous improvement and means that less N is excreted that could end up in watercourses.

“Additionally, most of the reduction was due to less nitrogen in the urine which is then lost to the environment as ammonia”, he said.

The University say this reduction will greatly help dairy farmers meet the UK government’s requirement to reduce ammonia emissions by 16% by 2030. The improvement in N use was also achieved without affecting milk performance or quality. It also reduced the cost of purchased soyabean meal by around 1 pence per litre.

“This reduction in purchased feed costs will improve dairy farmers profitability, but it is very important that the diet is properly formulated to meet the cows’ requirement for absorbed protein”, added Professor Sinclair.

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While the organisations have a long-standing working relationship, the new collaboration is based around DSM’s feed additive product Bovaer, which effectively and consistently reduces methane emissions from cows by over 30% in non-pasture-based farming systems.

The question that needs answering now is: Can it do the same in New Zealand’s pasture-based farming systems?

While New Zealand dairy farms are acknowledged as having the lowest carbon footprint in the world among major milk producers, Fonterra says it recognises that biological emissions produced by cows are a major contributor to the country’s overall emissions and is working to do whatever it can to find ways to reduce them.

Fonterra group director, Farm Source Richard Allen says that finding a solution to the methane challenge requires more than just the hard graft farmers are putting in. “We need to find a breakthrough in reducing emissions from cows and Bovaer could provide exactly that. This work with DSM is an exciting opportunity for the Co-op.”

Fonterra chief science & technology officer, professor Jeremy Hill, says the Co-op wants to explore and validate how Bovaer could work here in New Zealand, where cows are predominantly fed grass. “We also see this as an opportunity to further accelerate our global leadership in low-carbon dairy products to create more value for our New Zealand milk.”

“Fonterra is working closely with DSM New Zealand to ensure that any innovation is well tested and can easily be distributed and used by our farmers.”

Mark van Nieuwland, global programme head for DSM Nutritional Products, says they are proud to be in collaboration with Fonterra. “Both companies have worked together for many years, and it’s a pleasure to extend this to the field of sustainability and climate change.”

“With Fonterra, we have an important partner to potentially commercialise Bovaer® in New Zealand and globally. We look forward to combining our expertise and passion.

Bovaer was featured by the World Resources Institute as one of the ten global break-through technologies that could help to feed the world sustainably and if trials prove successful, it could help continue New Zealand’s leadership role in low carbon dairy production.

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This “prize for societal and environmental commitment” is the recognition of Ingredia by the ANIA (which groups together the flagship of the French food industry), for its committed and innovative collective action in the service of a sustainable dairy production rooted in a living territory.

Selected by the ANIA from major names in the food industry and before a prestigious jury, Ingredia was awarded the prize for excellence of an entire industry. Presented by the managing director of Lesaffre, an international player and neighbour of the Hauts-de-France, the prize for social and environmental commitment is the recognition of a group of women and men united by CSR, an agile and innovative company, promoting all the links in the regional dairy chain.

According to the organiser, “in the current context of economic and social crisis linked to the Covid-19 Crisis, the ANIA and EY teams are more than ever keen to reward and value companies that have been able to resist and adapt to feed the French despite the difficulties. Business leaders and their employees who embody the future of the French food industry.”

Composed of about 460 employees, subsidiary of the dairy cooperative Prospérité Fermière and its 1200 members in the Hauts de France, Ingredia is today a representative player of the possible synergy of a territorial anchorage with international development.

“We are very honoured by this award, which rewards the efforts made for several years by all the actors of our company, farmers, transporters, employees, partners or customers, to strengthen our responsible approach towards society and the environment. We are proud to be a leader in dairy innovation to better feed the planet and protect the environment and people’s health. ” declares Sandrine Delory, general manager of Ingredia.

This prize rewards Ingredia as an innovative player, who with the startup Connecting Food launched the first milk connected with blockchain technology. Ingredia offers bottles of milk, cream and dairy ingredients under blockchain, a world first, which raises Ingredia from BtoB to FtoC (Farmer to consumer), with real time audit by the consumer.

“It is a blockchain that guarantees traceability from producer to consumer ‘Actor! ”comments Julien du Boisgueheneuc, Ernst & Young development director (Western region).

This pioneering technological initiative connects breeders and consumers in complete transparency, providing access to the origin of the milk through a real-time digital audit. The breeders of Prospérité Fermière, located within a radius of 80km around the Ingrédia dairy, are committed to respecting the company’s eco-responsible specifications: cows fed without GMOs, straw in the barn, minimum grazing area for animal welfare, guaranteed price to the breeder.

“This prize is a great recognition of the work of our members. The breeders of the Prospérité Fermière cooperative are resolutely turned towards the world of the 21st century, a world where consumers are demanding in terms of quality and transparency,” concludes Serge Capron, president of Prospérité Fermière.

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“As a sustainably committed company we are investing with the pilot project in a visible compensation of carbon emissions in our own value chain, which will be accessible to the entire economy in the future,” says managing director Barbara Scheitz.

The organic dairy uses the latest technology with the help of an energy management system. Structural developments such as the high-bay warehouse with administration building (2015) and the new milk tanking system (2019) were implemented according to the latest technical standards with an efficient energy-saving concept. A compressed air cogeneration plant and a combined heat and power plant (2020) enable further significant energy and carbon savings. Additionally electricity has been 100% green since 2008.

When it comes to compensation, the Andechs dairy has decided to be active within its own value chain and in the region. In an ‘Andechs climate pact’ between the Andechser Scheitz dairy (as the initiator) and the Andechser Natur organic dairy farmers selected for the pilot phase as ‘climate farmers’, the goal of carbon compensation in the value chain is recorded. In concrete terms, this means that, at all stages of production, both in the dairy and at the local organic dairy farms, the avoidance of the release and the binding of carbon dioxide are developed and tested.

At the beginning, the number of tonnes of carbon emissions that can be saved, is estimated. On this basis, Andechser Scheitz dairy pays each climate farmer an annual advance. After two years an expert estimate of what has actually been achieved in the company, is made on the basis of the operating data and also at the end of the five-year term.

The Andechser Molkerei Scheitz supports the work of the climate farmers by paying €10 for every ton of carbon emissions that are stored or avoided. The most important measure in the context of ecological management is the build-up of humus, which on the one hand guarantees fertile soil and on the other hand offers valuable carbon storage potential for additional and permanent carbon emissions binding in the soil.

“We want to show that social and ecological services and challenges are closely linked in agriculture too. Organic farming is part of the solution for climate protection. With the regional carbon dioxide compensation as part of our Andechs Climate Pact, we are proving in a pilot project that it is possible to bind carbon in our own value chain,” Scheitz says.

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The ups and downs on the product markets led to a certain stabilisation of the markets and an improvement in the prices paid out for local farmers, who also have to struggle with additional costs. The average payout prices achieved in this year (January to October) were 34.55 cents/kg (2019 34.36 cents / kg) for GMO-free quality milk with natural ingredients without surcharges and without VAT. The values could be improved from summer and were at 36.72 cents/kg in October (2019: 33.83 cents/kg).

When the corona pandemic hit the Austrian dairy industry with full force in the spring, there was an abrupt lack of gastronomy and tourism demands during the normally high delivery times and this made the life of the dairies in tourist areas particularly difficult. Quantity control measures were necessary in several dairies.

Also in the latest lockdown set in motion in December, Austrian dairies as suppliers to the catering industry, tourism or wholesaling have been massively affected by lost sales. The processors have had to take organisational and additional hygiene measures for the safety of employees and customers, which also resulted in additional costs.

But thanks to these safety measures and additional efforts on the part of the companies, it has still been possible to guarantee security of supply despite the short-term change in demand in the food retail sector, notes the president of the Association of Austrian Milk Processors (VÖM) Helmut Petschar.

Foreign trade in Austria has so far been very positive in 2020, as exports increased by 4.4% by August, while imports fell slightly by 0.3%, according to the available figures from Statistics Austria.

Milk deliveries in Austria were at the beginning of 2020 higher than at the beginning of 2019 and since May lower – so overall, this should roughly match the previous year’s level. 19.1% of Austrian milk meets the organic standard.

The Austrian quality strategy was still developed even under the difficult conditions of the corona crisis. Essential components are the GMO-free, the high production and processing standards according to the Austrian food code and the AMA seal of approval including strict controls, innovative and sustainable packaging solutions, high animal welfare and sustainability standards. The country has also a high proportion of organic farms and other quality programs such as hay milk or organic meadow milk.

“We therefore see it as justified and necessary that these additional services benefit the farmers in the form of improved producer prices compared to international developments”, explains Helmut Petschar.

Petschar is reportedly delighted that in 2020 the protection of names for milk and dairy products has been strengthened in the EU Parliament. The VÖM president underlines that this must also be implemented consistently in Austria, so unauthorised use of the protected terms ‘milk’, ‘butter’, ‘yogurt’, ‘cheese’ and other dairy products is stopped accordingly.

Most recently in Austria there have been attempts to compress the best dairy products into nutritional profiles and bans on advertising.

“It must not be that, for example, best, unchanged organic milk with natural fat content may no longer be advertised, also that children are denied bread or cheese bread, as required by the National Nutrition Commission of the Ministry of Health. Here common sense, measure and goal are required in nutrition policy,” says Petschar.

The corona crisis has shown how important the supply of food is. Milk is an essential part of the diet of the Austrians; it represents one of the most important sectors of agriculture and is a key branch in rural areas, especially in mountain regions. The VÖM president therefore finds that joint efforts are necessary for positive further development in 2021:

• Safeguarding and further development of the near-natural Austrian dairy industry in the common agricultural policy of the EU and in the national programmes, especially in mountainous and disadvantaged areas, compensation for naturally-related increased collection costs, investment priorities to further improve animal welfare;
• Improvement of competitiveness and support of the quality strategy, feasible standards in the organic sector, support of the production and processing location Austria, avoidance of additional cost burdens and requirements;
• Mandatory labeling of origin and creation of the legal requirements so that the consumer can make an informed decision about different qualities associated with the origin;
• More transparency and fairer distribution of added value along the food chain, effective measures to eliminate structural competitive disadvantages for producers and processors, measures to curb private labels, implementation of the EU directive against unfair trading practices;
• Further development of AMA Marketing as a valuable support instrument for quality policy and marketing, support in export, solidarity-based financing by all participating sectors, focusing activities on contributing sectors, better structural integration of the participating sectors;
• Avoidance of excessive, cost-increasing, inefficient and impractical requirements in the environmental and packaging area, e.g. no excessive reusable quotas and no deposit on disposable packaging in the milk sector.

The post Petschar addresses the 2020 Austrian dairy market, looks to 2021 appeared first on Dairy Industries International.

With the combined news that the US will rejoin the Paris Climate Change Accord once president Joseph Biden takes office, this offers a positive outlook for the world, where major carbon producers have spent the last four years looking at their navels and shouting, while poor Greta Thunberg attempted to make them sit up and take notice.

Leaders from 75 countries met virtually in early December for the Climate Ambition Summit, co-hosted by France, the UK and the UN, and the US was noticeably absent from these proceedings. As a major source of greenhouse gases, not having the US on board is an issue that has now been rectified, and Biden has promised that the US will aim to have net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

So, a bit of a race to the top has begun, between China and the US. This is good, and the dairy industry welcomes them both to the work to be done. Under the Dairy Sustainability Framework, the global dairy industry has been busy offering a framework for a holistic approach to sustainability in the dairy value chain.

It is currently working on its 2020-2025 strategic action plan, and four new countries have joined it – Kenya, Rwanda, Vietnam and India. As dairy farmers and processors know all too well, pressure on global resources needs to be alleviated, and a common approach to solving sustainability challenges through sharing best practices. Dairy is one of the key agricultural industries, no matter where you are on the planet. We know more than most, that the more hands to the pump on the issue of carbon emissions is a better idea.

• Suzanne Christiansen, editor, Dairy Industries International.
  Keep in touch via email: suzanne@bellpublishing.com
  Twitter: @dairyindustries or LinkedIn: Dairy Industries International magazine.

The post The future is sustainable appeared first on Dairy Industries International.

Incorporating certain varieties of plantain into a cow’s diet has been shown to reduce the nitrogen concentration in their urine, which can leach through soil into groundwater.

To test the benefits in local pastures, DairyNZ has been leading the Tararua Plantain Project in the lower North Island, where farmers have been growing the leafy herb for their cows. The Ministry for Primary Industries is also involved as a key contributor.

Now, Fonterra and Nestlé are helping expand the project further through additional funding and by sharing expertise. “We’re all about finding ways to ensure Aotearoa New Zealand has a thriving environment and a thriving farming economy,” says Fonterra’s director of On-Farm Excellence Charlotte Rutherford. 

“We can achieve more by partnering with others, so it’s great to join forces with DairyNZ and Nestlé. This is helping to speed up the adoption of plantain by farmers. Ultimately it could be a real game-changer to reduce nitrogen from cows and help mitigate nitrous oxide emissions.”

The new collaboration is helping to accelerate uptake of Ecotain – a blend of environmentally functional plantain cultivars developed by seed company Agricom. Currently, 50 Tararua farms have started to use plantain, through DairyNZ’s Tararua Plantain Project.

With the funding boost from Fonterra and Nestlé, it is expected these farms and more will increase the amount they grow, therefore maximising the benefits.

Ecotain has been used in studies by DairyNZ, Agricom, Lincoln University, Massey University and AgResearch, with results showing it can significantly reduce nitrogen leaching. Preliminary studies also show it has the potential to lower on-farm GHG emissions through the reduction of nitrous oxide, which is promising news for farmers.

Nestlé, the world’s largest food company and a customer of Fonterra’s, was keen to be involved in the Tararua project given the commitments it has made around sustainability. 

“Working with our suppliers and others is critical for achieving Nestlé’s target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Reducing on-farm greenhouse gas emissions and protecting waterways will help us get there and we’re pleased to partner with Fonterra and DairyNZ on this initiative,” says Nestlé’s Robert Erhard.

The project also focuses on improving understanding of how farmers can implement Ecotain successfully and engaging farmers through workshops, events and a national farmer network to extend knowledge.

As the industry good body representing dairy farmers, DairyNZ invests significantly in sustainability research. DairyNZ’s general manager for New Systems and Competitiveness, David McCall, says the dairy sector has a wide range of work underway to reduce nitrates entering waterways and reduce on-farm emissions. “The seven-year Tararua Plantain Project is a flagship project for the dairy sector. It is delivering real, tangible results valued by farmers. The project has community at its heart as it seeks water quality improvements, while ensuring the dairy sector continues as an economic pillar within the local community.

“It is excellent to have extra support from Fonterra and Nestlé within the Tararua catchment,” says Dr McCall.

For more information about the Tararua Plantain Project, click here.

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“Globally, dairy provides 5% of the energy in the diet. It is a key source of one of the highest quality and most accessible proteins in the human diet, and in developing regions of the world where high-quality proteins are scarce, dairy can literally be a lifesaver. In countries such as India, where it is estimated that up to 70% of the population suffers some degree of protein calorie malnutrition, and 40% of the workforce experienced stunting as children, this notion is all too real,” the article notes.

One argument with cows and grazing is that the land could be turned over to arable farmland, but this is not the case, the article says. “Roughly 70% of the land currently used worldwide to raise cows is permanent pastureland, the type of land that because of topography, soil quality, or other factors would not serve as viable crop land under the best of circumstances. It has been estimated that approximately only 3% of the land used globally by dairy cows is potential arable land.”

Meanwhile, these marvellous animals are a miracle in turning poor quality into high quality protein. “The protein cows tend to ingest is largely inedible by humans and of far lower quality than the protein cows produce. It has been estimated that roughly 86% of the feed consumed by livestock is not consumed by humans. As an example, in California, cows consume upward of 38 million pounds of almond hulls per year, a by-product of the almond industry that would otherwise end up in landfills.”

So, the cow is a recycling unit on four hooves. You can also use her manure for fertiliser and increase the sustainability footprint further.

If we look at greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the numbers back up the cows too. “All of agriculture accounts for 24% of GHG emissions; within that dairy is responsible for 2.7%. However, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency’s 2016 US and global reports, the transportation sector in the US accounts for ~28% of GHG emissions (14% globally), energy ~28% (25% globally), and industry ~22% (21% globally).”

Further, a growing body of evidence indicates that the primary GHG produced by cows, methane, has a significantly lower warming potential than the CO2 produced by fossil fuels.

So, the landscape without cows: imagine your country’s rural areas looking bleak. “Roughly 600 million people around the world live on approximately 133 million dairy farms, mostly small farms that house on average 2 to 3 cows. Another 400 million people in and outside these farming communities derive their livelihoods from the dairy industry. Imagine the effects on whole towns and regions if cows disappeared from the landscape,” the article notes.

Dr Kanter also wonders about why livestock is considered a GHG “offender”, when other animals such as horses and pets get a free pass. There are nine million dairy cows and horses in the US, and over 160 million carnivorous cats and dogs, the latter consuming 30% as much food and producing 30% as much faeces as humans.

It’s a worthwhile read. You can find the article here.

• Suzanne Christiansen, editor, Dairy Industries International.
  Keep in touch via email: suzanne@bellpublishing.com
  Twitter: @dairyindustries or LinkedIn: Dairy Industries International magazine.

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The Tetra Pak Index, in its 13^th edition, has seen a 10% increase in global concern about food safety and future food supplies, now at 40%, compared to 30% from 2019. In addition, more than 50% of consumers not only believe that improving food safety is the responsibility of manufacturers, they see it as the number one issue that companies need to tackle now and in the future. According to this year’s research, health is deeply connected to heightened issues of food safety and hygiene: with two-thirds of consumers saying that being healthy is being safe and 60% of consumers globally saying they worry about the food they buy being hygienic and safe.

When asked what is key for them in a package, consumers indicate that ensuring food safety is its main purpose. They also express concerns about environmental innovations in packaging impacting food safety, even though the majority of respondents indicate ‘using sustainable packaging’ as one of the top issues food and beverage brands need to tackle – today and tomorrow.

Adolfo Orive, president and CEO, Tetra Pak, comments: “The Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted the status quo, accelerated trends and created a new landscape of consumer needs and opportunities for companies to build on. In particular, the industry needs to address the growing dilemma around food safety and the environment, stepping up towards the twin goals of meeting the human need for food while protecting our planet’s ecosystem. This is where food packaging can play a strong role in bringing about harmony.

“Working closely with our customers and stakeholders, we are already on a journey to create the ultimate sustainable food package – a carton package that is made solely from responsibly sourced renewable or recycled materials, is fully recyclable and carbon-neutral, allowing ambient distribution and meeting food safety requirements. We see this as a critical step in building a sustainable future for the next generation, especially in the aftermath of Covid-19.”

The Tetra Pak Index 2020 also highlights how food waste is rising up the agenda and this is now seen as a concern by more than three-quarters of respondents. The impact of Covid-19 on supply chains has accelerated awareness of food waste as a pressing issue. Tetra Pak states that there is a likelihood that this sentiment will grow going forward, as the world strives to feed its growing population. Consumers cite food waste reduction as both the number one environmental issue they can influence themselves and one of the top three priorities for manufacturers. But confusing labelling is a barrier, offering brands a chance for better communication.

Dan Esty, Hillhouse professor at Yale University, comments: “This year’s Tetra Pak Index highlights emerging consumer and social concerns that we see increasingly mirrored by academic research. With a growing global population set to require up to 70% more food by 2050, at a time when biodiversity, climate change and food security are becoming ever more pressing, there is an urgent need for change. Bold initiatives such as those taken by Tetra Pak to rethink future food packaging are therefore the need of the hour.”

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