Through our climate and circularity pillar, we engage across the value chain to reduce our environmental impact. Helping farmers operate more sustainably is an important part of our business, and Trouw Nutrition’s Carbon Reduction Program Dairy, powered by MyMilkPrint, is a tool that helps us do this.
Improving animal performance while lowering carbon emissions
MyMilkPrint is a one-stop online environmental footprint service for milk production that provides farmers with practical insights to help improve animal welfare and performance while reducing carbon emissions, in line with the climate and circularity pillar of Nutreco’s sustainability strategy. We talked to two Trouw Nutrition customers using the Carbon Reduction Program Dairy and MyMilkPrint on their dairy farms to find out how it has impacted their sustainability journey.
Bringing clarity – and joy
Nigel Armstrong, a Dairy Farm Manager at the University of Nottingham Centre for Dairy Science and Innovation, said partnering with Trouw Nutrition through MyMilkPrint has not only helped him respond to buyer requests for transparent sustainability information but brought back his passion for his work.
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“The role I feel dairy farmers can do today to reduce CO2 emissions is to carry on striving to be more efficient, striving to get more milk per cow, more milk from forage and being more circular in the way they do things,” said Nigel. He said his journey into sustainability started with an 11-page report he received from a milk buyer that did nothing but confuse him. “All I knew was I was in the bottom 10%. Now, looking at it through a new set of eyes, with MyMilkPrint, we've been able to look at the different areas I can improve on.”
Nigel said his MyMilkPrint assessment showed him he could start with changes to his feed rate and soya use. The changes were simple to make and led to a 10% reduction in his farm’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. And because he inputs information in MyMilkPrint before and after every diet change, he can quickly see results instead of waiting for the milk processor’s yearly audit.
But, for Nigel, the best side effect of using MyMilkPrint has been the way it’s brought the joy back to his daily work. “It's been very easy to see the positive changes. I see my future in dairy farming as being more profitable, more sustainable and happier – and, also, I found my passion again. I'm back doing what I love,” said Nigel.
Watch Nigel talk about how MyMilkPrint has helped bring clarity to his sustainability journey.
Creating a sustainability roadmap
Trouw Nutrition customer Dave Bacon, a dairy farmer and owner of Gleadthorpe Farm in North Nottinghamshire, England, says MyMilkPrint has helped him create a robust emissions reduction roadmap tailored to his herd.
“I think dairy farmers have a really important role, as does everybody else, in trying to reduce CO2,” said Dave. He has clear sustainability goals, and MyMilkPrint is helping him achieve them. “MyMilkPrint has really helped focus in the areas we need to improve to keep up in our game for our milk buyers and for ourselves.”
He said the tool showed three areas where his farm could improve on CO2 emissions by focusing on feed and making rations more sustainable. “For instance, we were putting soya hulls into the ration, and we had a more sustainable option in sugar beet pulp. And that was a very quick win for us because it actually was more cost effective and reduced CO2e.”
In Dave’s experience, integrating MyMilkPrint was simple, and he recommends it to other farmers looking to reduce CO2 emissions. He sees tools like MyMilkPrint as key to helping the industry become more sustainable – both environmentally and financially. “I see our future in in the dairy farming industry being more sustainable and more efficient and better for the environment and the economy,” Dave said. “And I think that's a really important message to try and send out to our consumers – that we're part of the journey, as well, and we want to improve the environment and produce good quality food for everybody to enjoy.”
Watch Dave talk about how MyMilkPrint has helped him create a robust emissions reduction roadmap.
For more information on MyMilkPrint visit Trouw Nutrition’s website.
Sustainable Development Goals
