This is part of a three-year programme to assist its 5,000 milk suppliers as they continue to enhance the environmental and economic sustainability of their family farms.
As part of this initiative, dairy suppliers will receive 0.5c/L (including VAT) through delivering specific sustainability actions.
According to the processor, this will equate to almost €3,000 in 2022 for the average supplier.
Across the programme’s lifetime, it will make over €54 million in total available to family farms as they continue to adopt a range of actions.
Sustainability Action Payment
It has designed the programme to assist dairy suppliers in:
-Reducing their carbon footprint;
-Enhancing water quality and biodiversity;
-Improving air quality and soil health in line with its sustainability strategy, Living Proof.
-As part of Living Proof, Glanbia Ireland, along with family farms, has pledged to deliver a 30% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with each litre of milk produced by 2030.
It will make the Sustainability Action Payment to all suppliers that deliver any seven sustainability actions from a total of 16 options.
A combination of Glanbia Ireland records and through the Bord Bia SDAS programme will verify actions.
For 2022, the first year of the programme, all suppliers will receive the payment in full.
To qualify for the 2023 payment, suppliers need to begin implementing their on-farm sustainability actions in 2022.
Key measures
Dairy suppliers will have to select from a series of options, which includes measures aimed at:
-Reducing carbon emissions by utilising multi-species swards and clover; measuring grass growth, improving the herd Economic Breeding Index (EBI) to deliver lower GHG emissions; milk recording and opting for FarmGen renewable energy generation;
-Improving air quality through the use of Low Emissions Slurry Spreading (LESS) equipment and the use of Protected Urea;
-Supporting biodiversity by planting additional native trees and increasing hedgerows;
-Protecting soil health and water quality through nutrient management planning; delivering ASSAP water quality improvement plans and water protection measures;
-Supporting animal health and welfare by herd disease screening; improving udder health and participating in the innovative Twenty20 Beef Club.
-According to the milk processor, measures are “closely” aligned with the climate action measures identified in Teagasc’s emissions reduction Marginal Abatement Cost Curve (MACC) climate plan.
