By Blake Jackson
Dairy producers, farm managers, nutritionists, agronomists, and crop consultants will have the opportunity to explore sustainable farming practices firsthand during the 2026 Carbon, Crops + Cows program hosted by Professional Dairy Producers (PDP).
Scheduled for July 28, 2026, and July 30, 2026, the workshops will take place at Mystic Valley Dairy LLC in Sauk City and Grass Ridge Farm LLC in Pittsville, Wisconsin.
Each event will begin with registration at 10:00 a.m., followed by educational sessions from 10:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Participants will receive lunch and program materials while learning how various farm management decisions influence sustainability and carbon metrics.
“Sustainability is at the heart of successful dairy businesses and we are always looking for ways to be more efficient, productive and resourceful,” said Paul Lippert, Pittsville, Wis., dairy producer and PDP board president.
“The Carbon, Crops + Cows program is a great way for producers to understand the options and the process for measuring their sustainability and carbon scores, learn actionable steps to improve and know the opportunities ahead.”
The program will feature interactive discussions using FARM-ES and related tools to evaluate the environmental impacts of crop production, feed management, manure handling, and energy use.
Attendees will hear from Kelsey Lichtenwalner, lead animal scientist at Eocene Environmental Group, whose work focuses on science-based livestock sustainability reporting, and Grace Moeller, manager of sustainability initiatives at the National Milk Producers Federation, who oversees environmental stewardship efforts through the National Dairy FARM Program.
The workshops will also include presentations from dairy farmers involved in PDP’s Your Farm - Your Footprint initiative.
Mitch Breunig will discuss operations at Mystic Valley Dairy, where his family milks 450 cows and farms 1,050 acres, while Paul Lippert will share experiences managing Grass Ridge Farm’s 700 Holsteins and Jerseys along with its crop production.
Your Farm - Your Footprint provides participating farms with confidential sustainability assessments, customized action plans, financial assistance opportunities, and peer-learning support to help strengthen long-term environmental performance.
For registration, visit at https://pdpw.org/programs/CarbonCropsCows2026/details.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-digitalvision
Categories: Wisconsin, Livestock, Dairy Cattle