- Author: Michael Hsu
In 20-year study, UCCE specialist Mitchell, colleagues, growers advance no-till and cover cropping practices
In the 1990s, long before “regenerative agriculture” was a buzzword and “soil health” became a cause célèbre, a young graduate student named Jeff Mitchell first learned about similar concepts during an agronomy meeting in the Deep South.
Mitchell was astonished to hear a long list of benefits attributed to practices known internationally as “conservation agriculture” – eliminating or reducing...
- Author: Emily C. Dooley, UC Davis
Low-cost wine industry additive also improved feed efficiency and milk quality
Researchers at University of California, Davis, added fresh grape pomace left over from winemaking operations to alfalfa-based feed for dairy cows and found that methane emissions were reduced by 10% to 11%.
The preliminary findings could offer a low-cost sustainable pathway for vineyards to reduce waste while helping dairy operations maintain quality while cutting back on emissions of methane, which is a powerful greenhouse gas.
“This is the first time anybody has shown that this can work in California,” said Ermias Kebreab, an animal science professor and...
- Author: Michael Hsu
Automatic milking systems increasingly used in California amid labor challenges
When third-generation dairy farmer Shonda Reid first saw a milking robot at a farm show 13 years ago, she immediately recognized that the technology represented the future. Her father, however, took a bit more convincing.
“I came home and showed him and said, ‘This is what we need to do.' And...
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
UC Dairy Series
A series of dairy seminars will be offered by UC Agriculture and Natural Resources scientists at the World Ag Expo. Presentations will cover the latest research on almond hulls as dairy feed, water management, nutrient management, manure management and much more. See the schedule below.
Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022
Seminar Trailer 2
Session 1: Nutrient Management & Manure Treatment Technologies
Tuesday, 1:00 –...
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research has awarded a $10 million grant to support U.S. dairy's Net Zero Initiative as a critical on-farm pathway to advance the industrywide 2050 Environmental Stewardship Goals set through the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy.
In California, UC Davis and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources scientists will collaborate on the nationwide project addressing carbon sequestration, soil health and nitrogen management.
"The Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research grant in partnership with Soil Health Institute and Dairy Research Institute are funding research that will positively impact the future of...
