Organic Valley, the largest cooperative of organic farmers in the nation, announced the first agreements and payments to initial organic farmers participating in Organic Valley’s Carbon Insetting Program this week.
Building off the University of Wisconsin-Madison published research in the Journal for Cleaner Production, which showed Organic Valley’s average on-farm milk emissions were some of the lowest in the nation, the cooperative is taking the next step to improve the carbon footprint of its milk. As a recipient of the USDA Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities grant, the co-op is offering additional support for practices implemented on eligible Organic Valley member-owner farms, including selecting and scoping region-specific projects, verification of those projects, and then helping to fund the practice installation.
The co-op offers technical assistance to help farmers plan and design carbon-reducing projects, sources grant implementation funds and ensures monitoring and verification of those projects. The projects include renewable energy installations at farmsteads, upgraded manure management technology, and enteric-reducing feed supplements.
