Dairy Industry Completes Fluid Milk Carbon Footprint Study
Management practices are important drivers of the carbon footprint for farms, plants and transportation fleets.
Compiled by staff
Published: Sep 23, 2010
The U.S. dairy industry has completed a comprehensive study of the carbon footprint associated with the production of a gallon of fluid milk, and the findings validate the results of other studies that have put the associated greenhouse gas emissions of all dairy products at only about 2% of total U.S. emissions.
Erin Fitzgerald, vice president of sustainability for the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, says the study is a significant first step for the dairy industry in a comprehensive, science-based approach to measure and improve its environmental footprint.
The University of Arkansas' Applied Sustainability Center was commissioned to conduct the GHG lifecycle assessment of fluid milk. Dr. Greg Thoma, professor of chemical engineering at the University of Arkansas and lead investigator of the study, presented the findings at the International Food LCA Conference.
Fitzgerald noted that the study's key finding is that management practices are important drivers of the carbon footprint for farms, plants and transportation fleets; more so than the geographic region, business model or size of the farm or organization.
For the study, researchers followed the lifecycle of a gallon of milk - from the beginning when crops are grown to feed cows, to when milk is produced and delivered to processors, through processing, packaging and distribution and all the way to the purchase and disposal of the gallon of milk by the consumer.
Involved were 500 farm and 50 processing plants across the U.S. as well as more than 210,000 round trips transporting milk from farm to processor. From a processing standpoint, the study represented 25% of all fluid milk in the U.S.
"Generation after generation, dairy farmers have made many improvements in the care of the land, air and water," said Jerry Kozak, president and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation. "I am pleased that hundreds of America’s dairy farmers completed detailed surveys about their farming practices, in order for us to create the most comprehensive, accurate assessment of our industry’s collective carbon footprint. Being proactive in this effort is another way to make improvements in the next generation."
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