Our farm liaison officers have begun collecting on-farm data as part of our work to show practical ways to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on UK dairy farms.
The aim is to build a partial carbon budget for each participating farm, focusing on the key areas that influence a farm’s carbon footprint. This will help identify where emissions are coming from, track changes over time and highlight opportunities to reduce them without compromising productivity.
At its core, the project is about practical understanding. By gathering accurate data now, we’ll be able to measure improvements later and build a solid evidence base for the wider industry. It also lays the groundwork for shared learning, enabling us to identify and promote low-emission practices and innovations that are working on real farms.
So far, participating farms have shared a wide range of farm data to give a working view of their main sources of emissions. This includes:
- General farm attributes – such as size, structure, and enterprise focus
- Livestock numbers and milk output – to benchmark productivity and emissions intensity
- Heifer rearing practices – a major factor in methane emissions from youngstock
- Feed use – both purchased and homegrown, which contribute to both direct and embedded emissions
- Animal housing – type and duration, affecting manure management and methane release
- Manure storage and spreading practices – to understand methane and nitrous oxide emissions from these practices
This driven approach enables our farm liaison officers to work closely with participating farmers, helping them pinpoint the areas of their system that have the greatest potential for improvement – and match those with the practical tools, support and options available within the project.
As more data comes in, we’ll start sharing insights on what’s working.
The more we understand what’s happening at ground level, the better placed we are to support meaningful, measurable progress across all the farms.