Breakout sessions at the DSF Annual Meeting, Paris

For this year’s meeting, DSF members asked for more opportunities to hear from other DSF members. DSF has listened and we have half this year’s meeting devoted to time for just this! A series of breakout sessions will offer time to discuss and raise questions in small groups about members’ sustainability activities. DSF is delighted that six member organisations from around the globe have stepped forward to share their DSF related experiences. Breakouts lined up will cover:

North America – Dairy farmers of Canada (DFC) - Net Zero by 2050 goal
To support the goal, DFC developed a Best Management Practices Guide (BMP) outlining 30 on-farm management practices. The guide helps farmers assess their current practices and identifies areas for improvement.

Latin America – Consorcio Lechero, Chile - Capturing and reporting progress
As a DSF Aggregating member since 2017 Consorcio Lechero has had to coordinate a number of different companies, standardize methodologies, ensure the confidentiality of information and drive the interest and motivation of the people who participate in the process within those organizations. This breakout will outline the challenges faced along their journey and the strategies they have implemented to overcome these in collaboration with those they are reporting on behalf of.

Oceania – Dairy Australia – Revisiting materiality and addressing challenges
The Australian Dairy Sustainability Framework (ADSF) has undertaken a refreshed Materiality Assessment in 2024 for the industry to identify the currently material topics using both an impact materiality (inside out) and financial materiality (outside in) lens. This breakout will share those findings and highlight shifts for the Australian dairy industry and will also highlight three areas of focus - surplus dairy calves, emissions reduction and farmer engagement in sustainability.

Africa – Palmhouse Dairies, Kenya – The journey to implement the DSF
Palmhouse Dairies share their experiences of implementing the DSF. From forming a Local Management Group to act as an advisory board for sustainability topics, reviewing and prioritising sustainability challenges, through to how they tackled additional priorities including such as improving farmer livelihoods and factory staff working conditions.

Europe – a joint session with UK & Italy
The Dairy Roadmap, UK – Continuous improvement with Animal Care
The Dairy Roadmap joined as a DSF Aggregating member in 2020, prioritising animal care, greenhouse gas emissions and waste. The session will share how the Roadmap has taken the DSF animal care criteria and is going beyond the high-level indicator to gather more data and drive progress to cow health and welfare.

Granlatte, Italy – A collaborative approach to improving biodiversity
Joining as DSF Implementing members in 2021, Granlatte prioritised a number of the DSF sustainability criteria in their materiality assessment, one of which was biodiversity. In this breakout, details are shared of their innovative and collaborative project working closely with Conapi, the largest cooperative of beekeepers in Europe. The project aims to reverse the decline in bee numbers observed in recent decades, by providing optimum habitats on farm, where bees and other pollinators can thrive.

The DSF looks forward to seeing many of you in person as well as online on October 14th. It’s not too late to register, click here to do so.