What is the Dairy Research Cluster 3?
The Dairy Research Cluster 3 (DRC3) is a joint industry and government commitment to dairy research, which builds on the success of the previous Dairy Research Clusters 1 and 2 (2010-18). Spanning from 2018 through 2023, DRC3 aimed to stimulate productivity, sustainability and profitability on Canadian dairy farms, as well as to improve knowledge of the health benefits of milk and dairy products.
Over the past five years, the DRC3 commitment totaled $16 million, which included commitments from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable CAP), Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC), Lactanet and Novalait, and contributions from several other dairy sector partners. Across Canada, more than 120 scientists worked on 15 research projects in collaboration with 1,500 dairy farms, and more than 120 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows were trained through these research projects.
What were the DRC3 projects and investments?
Projects were organized into four themes. The themes, percentage of allocated DRC3 research funds and topics are:
- Dairy farm efficiency and sustainability (40%): Forage breeding and management, reducing the dairy water footprint, dairy cattle nutrition, reproduction and genetic improvement
- Cow health and welfare (17%): Calf management, infectious disease mitigation, dairy cow locomotion, sustainable barn design, transition period and barriers to adopting best management practices
- Milk quality (29%): Microbiology and quality of milk, antimicrobial use and investigating alternatives for antimicrobials
- Dairy and cardiometabolic health (14%): Effect of dairy products on cardiometabolic health
Summaries of the research projects can be found on DFC and Novalait websites.
What resources have been developed to communicate research findings?
The DRC3 program concluded in 2023. DFC, Lactanet and Novalait are committed to ensuring that the results of this funded research are shared in ways that are accessible and meaningful for farmers, on-farm advisers, processors, health professionals, decision-makers and stakeholders.
Over the past two years, DFC worked in close collaboration with research teams and their communications partner, Agricultural Communications and Epidemiological Research (ACER) Consulting, to develop a new suite of educational resources from DRC3 research findings, including:
- Thirteen project research summaries
- Fourteen educational infographics
- A 22-episode podcast series
- Ten animated and live-action videos
- Twelve recorded webinars, presented by researchers
- Numerous trade articles
- A research-highlights magazine showcasing DRC3 findings
Through the fall of 2022 and winter of 2023, seven in-person farmer-oriented events were held to share the research results in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick.
These resources are now available on a new section of the DFC and Novalait websites.
What’s next for Canadian dairy research?
Dairy Research Cluster 4: For a Sustainable Dairy Sector (DRC4) was officially announced in July 2023 and runs from April 2023 through March 2028. This five-year $13 million initiative is a joint industry and government commitment, which includes $7.5 million from AAFC under the Sustainable CAP AgriScience Program, $3.24 million from DFC, $1 million from DairyGen partners (DFC, Semex Alliance, Holstein Canada and Lactanet), $795,000 from Novalait and other in-kind contributions from dairy sector partners.
Thirteen research projects will be funded on topics relating to greenhouse gas reduction and carbon sequestration, antimicrobial resistance and stewardship, genetic improvement, dairy processing innovation, the impact of dairy products on human health and more. This next phase of dairy research will play an integral role in contributing to the dairy industry’s goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 and targeting the 2022-27 National Dairy Research Strategy priorities.
Stay tuned for more information on upcoming projects under DRC4.
This article was written by Annik L’Espérance and Émie Désilets from DFC, with ACER Consulting.
DFC invests in scientific research to foster innovation in the Canadian dairy sector. DFC supports research initiatives that benefit all Canadian dairy farmers and works in collaboration with its members and other sector partners to address priorities outlined in the National Dairy Research Strategy. The goals of this strategy are to increase farm efficiency and sustainability, enhance animal health, care and welfare practices, and strengthen the role of dairy in human nutrition and health, as well as in sustainable diets. Visit DFC Dairy Research for more information.
