2023 Dairy Sustainability Alliance^® Spring Meeting

• Emcee: Angela Hessinger, Director, Sustainability Iniatives, Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy
• Sarah Hanson, Executive Vice President, Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy
• Barbara O'Brien, President and CEO, Dairy Management Inc. & President and CEO, Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy

• Katie Brown, EdD, RDN, Executive Vice President, Scientific and Nutrition Affairs, National Dairy Council 
• Tim Joyce, Principal, ZS Associates
• James Weingartner, Strategy Insights and Planning Manager, ZS Associates

The increasing convergence of human and planetary health requires a holistic approach to sustainability. In addition to a strategic focus on regenerating the environment and caring for our animals and communities, the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy is committed to advancing well-being by delivering dairy nutrition that meets emerging and personalized health needs of today and tomorrow’s consumers. In this session, you’ll learn more about the health and wellness focus of the dairy industry, including innovative research and insights being vetted for dairy’s greatest impact with consumers.

• Moderator: Nicole Ayache, Chief Sustainability Officer, National Milk Producers Federation
• Leigh Chase, Director of Center Store Category, Hannaford Supermarkets
• Randi Muzumdar, Senior Director Dairy and Energy Procurement, HP Hood
• George Parmenter, Hannaford Health and Sustainability Brand Lead, Ahold Delhaize USA
• Skylar Ryll, Senior Director, Milk Marketing and Operations, Dairy Farmers of America
• Jenni Tilton-Flood, Maine Dairy Farmer, Flood Brothers, LLC

Farmer and farmworker safety and well-being are dairy industry priorities, motivating collaboration in the Northeast to further advance on-farm safety and HR practices. Ahold Delhaize USA / Hannaford, HP Hood, Dairy Farmers of America, and Agri-Mark are partnering to assess workplace practices on dairy farms in New England and New York through the National Dairy FARM Program’s Workforce Development evaluation tool. Assessment findings help identify areas where additional education, training, or resources can support continuous improvement. This session will explore how the partnership came to be, its impact to date, and its plans for future evolution.

Chicago Ballrooms A-B, D, E, F-G
We want to hear from you. This session provides an essential forum for cross-sector stakeholder discussion and input. All rooms will discuss the same questions/topics.

Sponsored by:

• Tim Kurt, DVM, Ph.D., Senior Vice President, Environmental Research, Dairy Management Inc.

DMI and the Innovation Center are advancing several research projects that support U.S. dairy in reaching our collective 2050 environmental stewardship goals. Learn more about these efforts and the progress expected in 2023.

• Moderator: Katy Schultz, Owner, Tri-Fecta Farms, Inc. & Past President, Professional Dairy Producers
• Jackie Klippenstein, Senior Vice President, Chief Government and Industry Relations Officer, Dairy Farmers of America
• Chris Kopman, Chief Executive Officer, Newtrient LLC
• Darrin Monteiro, Vice President, Sustainability and Member Relations, California Dairies, Inc.

Accounting and communication of emissions reductions have become increasingly complex. Methodologies and data sets vary from one standard to the next and can often fail to account for the intricacies of agricultural sectors, which are both a source and sink of GHG emissions, and can stifle action. While efforts are being made to revise and harmonize some global protocols, it’s uncertain where they will land and when. This session will explore what U.S. dairy can do together to demonstrate progress within the limits of the current standards and as the guidance evolves.

Dive a little deeper on a variety of social responsibility topics with our breakout sessions. Sessions will not be repeated.

Circularity Throughout the Value Chain (Chicago A-C)
The term ‘circularity’ is becoming more mainstream as organizations frame and discuss their sustainability activities – but what does it really mean? Together, we’ll explore what circularity can look like at various points throughout the value chain and the potential to incorporate circularity into industry practices.

• Moderator: Jocelyn Bridson, Director, Environment and Community Impact, Tillamook County Creamery Association
• Olivia Florence Godber, Ph.D., Research Associate, Dairy Sustainability, Cornell University
• Ben Kroeplin, Senior Marketing Manager, Milk Specialties Global
• Rachel Turgason, Senior Director, Member Relations and Corporate Sustainability, Foremost Farms USA

Conversations with Consumers: Why Sharing Dairy's Health and Sustainability Story Matters (Chicago D-E)
Thought leaders and consumers alike crave transparency and information about the economic, social, and environmental sustainability of the foods they recommend and eat, and trust getting that information from authoritative experts like dietitians and doctors. How we communicate dairy’s story and its contributions to healthy lifestyles and sustainable food systems matters. This breakout will provide insights and inspiration from registered dietitians who are helping to tell the holistic story of dairy and its role in public and planetary health.

• Moderator: Erin Coffield, Vice President, Health and Wellness Communications, National Dairy Council
• Clancy Cash Harrison, MS, RDN, FAND, Founder of The Food Dignity® Movement, TEDx Speaker, Author
• Abbey Copenhaver, New York Dairy Farmer, Dietitian & NDC Ambassador, Ivy Lakes Dairy
• Amy Goodson, MS, RD, CSSD, LD, Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics, Nutrition Consultant, Speaker, Spokesperson, Writer (The Sports Nutrition Playbook), Owner, RD Career Jumpstart

Funding Solutions: How to Cash In on Government Financial Assistance for Sustainability Practice Implementation (Chicago F-G)
The practices and technologies needed for U.S. dairy to reach its environmental stewardship goals largely exist, but one of the greatest barriers to adoption is the often significant investment required by farmers and the entire value chain. A range of public and private financing options exist, if you know how to take advantage of them. This session will discuss several federal grant and funding opportunities available through USDA and EPA, their various requirements and timelines, as well as insights from Dairy Sustainability Alliance members who have successfully secured funding.

• Moderator: Bruce Knight, Principal and Founder, Strategic Conservation Solutions
• Katie Flahive, Environmental Scientist, Nonpoint Source Management Branch, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
• Juan Hernandez, Acting Project Branch Chief, U.S. Department of Agriculture - Natural Resources Conservation Service
• Alexandra Neumann, Agriculture Projects Coordinator, Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay
• Lindsay Reames, Executive Vice President, Sustainability and External Relations, Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative

• Moderator: Bruce Knight, Principal and Founder, Strategic Conservation Solutions
• Sarah Michalek, Sustainability Supervisor at Michigan Milk Producers Association
• Suzanne Vold, Minnesota Dairy Farmer, Dorrich Dairy
• Brian Zook, Director of Milk Sourcing and Sustainability, Bel Brands USA

Biodiversity is a rapidly growing priority in the marketplace and on the world stage. U.S. dairy farms have and will continue to play an important role in preserving, restoring, and improving biodiversity. Members of the Innovation Center’s Biodiversity Working Group will share updates from more than two years of collaboration and findings, including recognition for the biodiversity value dairy farmers provide, the importance of measurement and communication, interconnectivity within other environmental topics, and real world examples of what this looks like in practice.

• Nicole Ayache, Chief Sustainability Officer, National Milk Producers Federation
• Karen Scanlon, Executive Vice President, Environmental Stewardship, Dairy Management Inc. & Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy

When U.S. dairy set its ambitious environmental stewardship goals in 2020, the Innovation Center committed to report progress toward them every five years. As preparations are made for the first report, you will learn about the national level approach to measuring and reporting progress and how the evolution of the FARM Environmental Stewardship tool will aid on-farm data collection for future reports.

• Marilyn Hershey, Dairy Farmer, Ar-Joy Farms & Chair, Dairy Management Inc.