USDA and Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy Announce Agreement to Enhance Sustainability and Cut Industry’s Greenhouse Gases by 25 Percent

As you may have heard, on December 15th the USDA recognized the work of dairy producers and the dairy industry with a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which identifies ways that the USDA plans to partner with and support the dairy industry in continuing to improve sustainability.

The MOU, which is non-binding and policy-neutral, will provide the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy access to funding, financing and increased research, and will help us reach our goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2020. The development of the MOU was led by the Innovation Center on behalf of the entire dairy industry. The MOU was formally announced at the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference by Sec. Vilsack and spokesperson Erin Fitzgerald, on behalf of the Innovation Center. Check out video coverage of the announcement by clicking here.

The historic MOU announcement has received extensive coverage in national and international media channels, including Associated Press, Reuters UK, Washington Post and many agriculture media outlets. Go to the Newsroom on the USDairy.com site for highlights of this media coverage and copies of the news releases from USDA and the Innovation Center.

We are pleased that the USDA has recognized the dairy industry’s efforts to create a more sustainable future for our industry, our communities and our planet.

It could not have been possible without the support of stakeholders like you. Over the next few months, we will be working with the greenhouse gas reduction project teams and others to identify the next steps, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, we wish you a very happy New Year.