Tesco outlines emissions targets for dairy suppliers

Tesco has launched a new Future Dairy Partnership, alongside milk processors Arla and Muller, with a focus on driving down on-farm carbon emissions by 30% by 2030.

Farmers supplying Tesco through its Sustainable Dairy Group, which are paid based on a cost-of-production-plus model, are being consulted on the initiative.

The 400 farms within the group will be involved in a number of focus groups and on-farm trials, including the use of methane-suppressing feed additives designed to help reduce emissions.

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A report will also be produced as part of the project to support the wider dairy sector in becoming more sustainable.

Tesco, Arla, and Muller will collaborate to produce a Sustainable Dairy Blueprint document, providing the farmers involved with a selection of sustainability targets and guidelines.

Limited information has been made available on what the requirements imposed on farm businesses will be and how this will be funded.

However, a spokesperson for Arla told Farmers Weekly:

“More details on exactly what this will entail will be detailed in the coming months, but it will be a comprehensive framework that outlines industry-wide actions on carbon reduction, nature conservation, and animal welfare.”

Farmer partnerships

The farmer-led partnership is designed to help share learnings and accelerate progress on-farm.

Ashwin Prasad, chief commercial officer at Tesco, said:

“We’ve been playing a leading role in transitioning to a low-carbon agriculture sector for some time, through the close long-term partnerships we have with our Tesco Sustainable Dairy Group farmers.

“It’s critical we continue to ensure farmers play a pivotal role in this work, and we look forward to working with them as the work of the partnership is established.”

Bas Padberg, managing director at Arla Foods UK, added that the UK dairy industry must accelerate its action to address the ongoing challenges that the climate emergency presents to the food system.

“The time is now to unite, invest, and make a lasting impact for generations to come,” said Mr Padberg.

Rob Hutchison, chief executive of Muller, said:

“We know our customers and consumers expect us to play a role in driving positive environmental changes within the dairy industry, and our commitment to this is underlined by our ambition to reduce emissions from our supplying farms by 30% by 2030.”