Idele Open Day at DCF and LF

For over 5 years, Trévarez demonstration farm (french dairy I3S) has been working on reducing its carbon footprint with the aim of becoming climate neutral. A 15% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has been achieved by implementing technical levers that are accessible to as many farmers as possible.

The morning of 20 February brought together more than 70 players in the dairy industry: farmers, advisors, dairies, banks, unions, associations, etc. After a presentation of the practices implemented and the technical, economic, and environmental results obtained at the Trévarez experimental farm, the various approaches to supporting farmers in the Brittany region were presented. This was followed by a round-table discussion in which various stakeholders discussed the future of dairy farming, as well as the industry and local areas.

In the afternoon, around a hundred farmers and advisors visited Trévarez farm, where they took part in a series of workshops presenting ways of improving environmental performance: feed trials, better heifers’ management, carbon storage, the albedo effect, agroforestry, biodiversity management, etc. These are all practices that can be replicated by visitors, because they are profitable!

Farmers from the French dairy I3S got together on the 21st of February for a day of work and visits. During the morning, the impact of implementing solutions on the carbon footprint and economic results was presented to them by their advisors. They then fine-tuned their action plan by describing their changes in practice in more detail and quantifying their objectives. In the afternoon, one of the farmers welcomed us to his farm. The group of farmers braved the rain to discover a very autonomous system, with cross-bred cows fed exclusively with grass and thus a very low carbon footprint!