HEALTHY FARMS
Nurturing regenerative organic farming has been part of Stonyfield’s mission since 1983. It turns out that adding acres free from toxic persistent pesticides and improving soil health through organic farming practices is not just good for farms, it’s also good business.
Digging up climate mitigation data to drive climate action
Soil can store carbon, which helps protect the climate and also improves soil health. Stonyfield works closely with cutting-edge researchers and organizations to aid farmers in adopting farming practices that advance climate mitigation. In 2023, we continued to work closely with two major organizations, The Soil Inventory Project and Regrow, to measure soil carbon sequestration and gather other data that will allow us to provide farmers with recommendations on how to increase that sequestration in the future. In 2023, this collaboration involved modeling and soil sampling to measure soil carbon sequestration and land-based emissions. The analysis from these efforts is expected to be completed in 2024.
in 2023, Stonyfield conducted soil carbon sampling
This data will advance our ability to sequester more carbon on these farms and to advance this applied science generally.
commitment to on-farm renewable energy and energy efficiency
In 2023, Stonyfield advanced renewable energy initiatives in its supply chain by funding energy audits, providing technical assistance, and supporting grant applications for farms. Despite five years of collaboration with farmers, renewable energy experts, and solar developers, we will not meet our 2025 goal of sourcing 100% of direct supply milk from renewably powered farms. While many farms have installed solar panels or are in progress, achieving this target requires individualized upgrades to farm and utility infrastructure, proving more challenging than expected. This work will extend beyond 2025, as we remain committed to the economic and environmental benefits of on-farm renewable energy for organic dairy farmers. We will continue supporting farms in accessing the necessary resources and information to install renewable energy.
Technical assistance for the Stonyfield supply chain
Stonyfield’s Technical Assistance program supports farmers’ operations, sustainability, and efficiency through access to educational resources, peer learning opportunities, and one-on-one support from local experts. Stonyfield also provides seed money to help direct milk supply farmers with innovative sustainability efforts. This technical assistance fund offers each farm $4,000 annually to be used to meet individual goals. The program also provides farms with access to a larger, dedicated pool of funds for farm modernization and innovation projects through the Dairy Business Innovation Center, a program established by the 2018 Farm Bill. In 2023, some of our direct milk supply farmers used the available funds to enhance their operational efficiency, environmental sustainability, and overall farm management.
Suppliers TRANSITIONING to organic
Stonyfield entices more dairy farms to go organic, in part, by offsetting some of the added expenses. Organic standards require farmland to be managed organically for 3 years before the farm can be certified. Dairy cows must be managed organically for 1 year before they can be certified organic, which means the farm has the expense of organic feed without receiving an organic premium for the milk. Stonyfield provides transitioning farms with payments during this year to offset the added expense. Two dairy farms began their organic transition journey with Stonyfield’s help in 2023, underscoring Stonyfield’s dedication to growing the supply of organic milk in the New England area. Currently 15,000 of the 77,000 acres in Stonyfield’s direct milk supply chain represent land that was converted to organic with Stonyfield’s direct support.
