EuroDairy - a European network for dairy farming
EuroDairy is a European Horizon 2020 network programme for sustainable dairy farming. A network to connect dairy farmers wishing to improve the economic, social and environmental performance of their farms and to provide a more sustainable future for their farms and families. EuroDairy is active in 14 Member States encompasses 40% of dairy farmers, 45% of cows and 60% of EU milk production. In February 2016 this 3-year European project started. The Dutch partners are ZuivelNL, ZLTO and Wageningen University & Research.
EuroDairy focusses on key issues affecting future sustainability:
- Socio-economic resilience – in order to be able to absorb large (milk) price fluctuations.
- Resource efficiency – optimising the use of expensive inputs, like fertilisers and concentrates, which also have an impact on the environment.
- Animal care – innovative management practices, among others to reduce the use of antibiotics.
- Biodiversity – combining nature and landscape conservation and profitable dairy farming.
EuroDairy will provide European dairy farmers useful information and knowledge about usefull innovations through videos, brochures, webinars, 'open learning platform' farm visits, exchange visits to other countries and technical workshops. EuroDairy will be supported by: 42 ‘operational groups’ (farm networks), a network of 120 innovative pilot farms. The so-called operational groups are existing or new networks (projects), consisting of dairy farmers and other actors engaged in the development and implementation of practical innovations on the four sustainability themes. On the pilot farms the innovations are studied in more detail, they communicate about their experiences and provide data for benchmark comparisons.