Sustainability landmark links dairy industry and USDA

Amid all that's going on at the U.N. climate conference in Copenhagen, the U.S. dairy industry got its moment in the spotlight, and in a positive way.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced that, through a landmark memorandum of understanding, USDA and the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy will work jointly in support of the dairy industry's goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent over the next decade. The agreement was signed by Vilsack and Tom Gallagher, CEO of Dairy Management, Inc., which manages the national dairy checkoff program.

DMI was one of the founding members of the Innovation Center, which is an industry-wide group working together on precompetitive strategies to grow sales of dairy products. The Innovation Center is nearing completion of a life-cycle assessment of fluid milk from farm to table.

Under the new agreement, USDA will take a number of steps to help dairy farmers, including support of a relevant, strategic research plan to address emissions issues. Other initiatives would help the industry develop future technologies, advance nutrient management, support renewable energy, and improve energy efficiency. Vilsack called manure-to-electricity technology "a win for everyone."