DAIRY NEWS – Opportunities for dairy farmers to participate in the carbon marketplace are growing rapidly; so are the questions about which program is the right fit for each operation and what producers should know before making commitments. The Carbon Conference presented by Professional Dairy Producers® (PDPW) will provide a focused, in-depth look at the options, opportunities and risks in this quickly evolving sector.
The one-day event will be held on Tue., Jan. 31, 2023, at the Sheraton Hotel in Madison, Wis. Registration begins at 10:00 a.m. and the program will conclude at 4:45 p.m.
“Dairy producers and our industry as a whole have been leading the way with sustainable practices on our farms for some time now – and customers throughout the food chain are relying on farmers to meet targets to reduce the carbon footprint,” said Fox Lake, Wis., dairy producer and PDPW board president Katy Schultz. “The Carbon Conference will bring together the experts on how these markets work, the data and systems farmers need to actively participate, and firsthand experience with the practices that can both benefit the planet and a farm’s bottom line.”
Interactive presentations and panel discussions will take a deep dive into some of the most pressing topics facing today’s farmers and industry leaders:
- “Carbon markets 101: offsets and credits” presented by Patrick Wood, founder of Ag Methane Advisors, will introduce the various types of carbon offsets and credits, how each works and how the market is evolving.
- “Making the right moves” will highlight strategies to determine which carbon market offerings are the right fit for each operation and how they can impact financial returns; presented by Patrick Wood.
- “Calculating your impact” facilitated by Katie Catron, lead agronomist with Sustainable Environmental Consultants, will review how a carbon footprint number is calculated for an operation and the data that contributes to it. She’ll also outline the practices that may have the most impact on reducing that number.
- In “Navigating options with the experts,” this panel discussion will feature Jamie MacKinnon, senior vice president with Anew, Ryan Stockwell, senior manager for grower engagement at Indigo Ag, and Nate Schuster, product development manager, 3Degrees. The panelists will share their experiences with credit types and incentives dairy owners can create based on various farm activities. Patrick Wood will facilitate the discussion that will highlight real-world, on-farm examples including soil carbon sequestration, reducing enteric methane from dairy cows, reducing nitrogen from fertilizer management practices and more.
Learn more about the 2023 PDPW Carbon Conference here, including speaker information and available continuing-education units. Register your team today by scanning the QR code in the program flier or contacting PDPW at 800-947-7379. Follow along digitally in advance of and during the event by following @dairyPDPW and using #mypdpw on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
Professional Dairy Producers (PDPW) is the nation’s largest dairy producer-led organization of its kind, focusing on producer professionalism, stakeholder engagement and unified outreach to share ideas, solutions, resources and experiences that help dairy producers succeed.
