The Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center (NE-DBIC) is pleased to announce awards for 5 additional farmer cohort projects throughout the Northeast region, joining 3 others already underway. These service providers provide targeted technical assistance to farms interested in transitioning to grass-based production models, enhancing the production of home-grown forages, and/or utilizing alternative farm management strategies not typically found in the United States dairy sector.
In early 2022, $546,000 was contracted out for technical service providers to engage with cohorts of dairy farmers across four states. The selected contractors will work over the course of two years to provide targeted group and individual technical assistance, with an opportunity for participating farms to access grant funds to help further build their projects.
Awarded contractors from this funding round are:
- Conservation Performance LLC |Northeast Region| is working with a panel of farmers and farm financial experts to build a set of financial reports that represent the implementation of a New Zealand-style farm structure adapted for use in the Northeast.
- Cooperative Regions of Organic Producer Pools (CROPP) |ME, VT, NY, PA| will work with no less than 35 farmers in their area, to promote and educate on climate smart farming with an emphasis on practices that are most associated with profitability and environmental stewardship.
- Cornell University Cooperative Extension will work with two cohorts in New York of 5-10 farmers each to collect data and perform independent studies on dairy replacements on organic dairies, healthcare preventions and remedies for organic dairy replacement, and the economic disparity caused by the loophole in the USDA’s Origin of Livestock Rule.
- University of Maine Cooperative Extension |ME| will work with Maine dairy farmers to implement precision dairy technologies. Farmers will also utilize the data from wearables to enhance current management on their dairy farm to improve production, health, and cow comfort.
- University of Vermont Extension |VT, NY| will work in tandem with agronomists, animal nutritionists, grazing experts, and farm financial experts to work with 8-10 farms on developing a holistic alternative management strategy.
For more information about these projects or inquire about future funding for hosting cohorts, reach out to Laura.Ginsburg@vermont.gov.