Sustainable farming has never been more important. Not only can prioritizing sustainability be beneficial to the environment and public perception, but also to your long-term success and the bottom line. Read how three Ontario dairy producers are implementing sustainable measures on their farms.

As the conversation around carbon continues to evolve, the Professional Dairy Producers (PDP) held the Carbon Conference 3.0 in Madison, Wisconsin, at the end of January to inform dairy producers and allied industry of current strategies to turn carbon challenges into business opportunities.

By combining satellite-based methane data with AI-driven insights, we empower producers to identify emission hotspots, implement best-fit solutions and verify their impact. Producers, policymakers and processors can then collaborate on incentives that make sustainable practices both achievable and rewarding.

Since the turn of the century, sustainability has been integrated into business strategies, giving birth to the triple bottom line – people, planet and profit. This has expanded how people think about sustainability. It is more than environment and includes economic and social or societal dimensions.   

Sustainability can go in many directions, but there’s a sense that all the directions eventually lead to the same destination. As we ring in yet another new year, it seems like an appropriate time to map out the buffet of sustainability. So grab a fresh plate and get in the line as we review the options.

“Today we have a third of the number of cows we had in 1960, and we’re producing more milk,” said Christine Baes of the University of Guelph during her keynote presentation at the 2024 Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council annual meeting. “That’s a pretty good sustainability story, but when you Google ‘sustainability and dairy cows,’ you see headlines about cow flatulence. Why is that?”

In a room filled with dairy producers, processors and customers, farmer Mitch Breunig looked around and announced, “I’m really impressed with how many people care about sustainability. … Everyone is this room is here because of the dairy cow, and improving the dairy cow is going to be the path to make this sustainability journey come together.”