S US TA I NA B I L I T Y: I N V E S T M E N T
HIGHER NET PROFIT,
ZERO NET EMISSIONS Agronomist Simon Jette-Nantel on the value of investing in Net-Zero By Robert Price SETTING A NATIONAL TARGET OF NET-ZERO GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS BY 2050 may have seemed like news when Dairy Farmers of Canada announced it in 2022, but dairy farmers across Canada have been committed to responsible, environmentally sustainable farming practices for decades. What DFC’s public commitment does is challenge milk producers to find greater efficiencies in their businesses – efficiencies that will benefit the environment as much as it profits their farms. “I think [the commitment to Net-Zero is] the industry saying we can see where the customer’s going, where the social demands are evolving, and we feel the need to be in tune with that,” says Simon Jette-Nantel, an agronomist at Lactanet. Jette-Nantel says the dairy industry’s commitment to Net-Zero also “gives direction” to the institutions standing behind Canada’s dairy farmers. “The commitment has given people in the industry – on the research side and knowledge transfer side – a clear direction that we need to provide the tools to help to find our way and get the industry to meet that target.”
S P U R R I NG I N NOVAT ION Jette-Nantel says Net-Zero commitments can spur profit and innovation. Think of it as a spark that ignites investments, improved financial results and reduced emissions.
Lactanet's Simon Jette-Nantel says efficiencies benefit the environment and the bottom line. 2 2 • L A T E S P R I N G / E A R LY S U M M E R 2 0 2 3 • W W W. M I L K P R O D U C E R . C A
Getting to zero will take effort and time but JetteNantel says a focus on improving feed efficiency and herd genetics will, in time, deliver a good return on investment to producers and a healthy return to the environment. So too will improved heifer management. Optimizing genetics to lower a cow’s first calving means a more productive working life for the cow. Cows that stay productive longer can mean fewer cows on the farm, less labour, and better margins. “And if it ends up also reducing the total