Best Practices...

Research & Innovation

• Dairy Innovation Hub: Launched in 2019, this partnership across three UW campuses (Madison, Platteville, River Falls) supports over 260 projects focusing on land/water, human health, animal welfare, and farm business.
• Efficiency Gains: Due to innovations in crop production and nutrition, producing a gallon of milk in 2017 required 30% less water and 21% less land than in 2007.
• Waste-to-Resource: Wisconsin leads in on-farm bioenergy systems like methane digesters, which turn manure into renewable energy.

Land Stewardship

• Soil Health: About 60% of Wisconsin dairy farmers use cover crops to prevent erosion and nourish the soil, while many employ no-till or reduced tillage techniques.
• Water Management: Farmers commonly recycle water up to four times, utilizing it for cooling or cleaning before returning it to the land.
• Local Feed Production: Most crops fed to Wisconsin cows are grown on surrounding fields, limiting transportation emissions.

Cow Care & Comfort

• Health-Focused Management: Farmers emphasize that healthy, comfortable cows produce higher-quality milk. This includes balanced diets developed with nutritionists and specialized veterinary care.
• Comfort Technology: Sand separation technology is used to clean and reuse sand for bedding, reducing bacteria and keeping cows cool.
• Nutrient Management: Some farmers use specialized planting techniques to add cover crops like rye into the cows' diet while holding soil in place.