Topcon's Dan Hendricks meets with Hansel New, the Director of Sustainability at Dairy Farmers of America, and Chad Huyser, President of Lely North America, to debunk common misconceptions about the dairy industry and shed light on how modern dairy technologies have positively impacted consumers, dairy farmers, and cows over the past 15 years.
To read the full report, visit:
www.aem.org/news/aem-highlights-the-benefits-of-modern-dairy-at-world-dairy-expo-in-madison-wisconsin
Topcon's Dan Hendricks meets with Hansel New, the Director of Sustainability at Dairy Farmers of America, and Chad Huyser, President of Lely North America, to debunk common misconceptions about the dairy industry and shed light on how modern dairy technologies have positively impacted consumers, dairy farmers, and cows over the past 15 years.
To read the full report, visit:
www.aem.org/news/aem-highlights-the-benefits-of-modern-dairy-at-world-dairy-expo-in-madison-wisconsin
Hello, and welcome to the Topcon Talks Agriculture podcast. We are wishing all of our listeners a happy 2023 as this is the first podcast of the New Year. We have an incredibly interesting podcast for you today, and I am thrilled that you have taken the time to listen, and I know that you won't be disappointed. My name is Dan Hendricks, and I am your host for today. I serve as the Senior Business Development Manager at Topcon Agriculture, and I get to work with an amazing team of talented individuals who love agriculture. They enjoy technology, and they strive to help farmers and growers find solutions. So let's get right into our podcast for today, we are talking about the environmental benefits of modern dairy and forage production. And why is this an important topic you might ask? Well, because the internet, social media, newspapers, magazines, and the national news keep pumping out information and messaging and propaganda, and maybe propaganda is a strong word, but all of this messaging is about the negative effects of modern agriculture operations and how they are bad for the environment. And I am constantly seeing and reading and hearing and being hit with messaging about how farms are adding to global warming and environmental crisis. In today's podcast, we are going to look at a powerful study sponsored by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, also the National Milk Producers Federation and the Dairy Farmers of America, and hear from two guests that will dispute the message that farming is hurting the environment. In fact, their data and their experience shows that agriculture is actually benefiting many of the environmental concerns that we hear about. So let me first introduce our guests and then we'll get right into our podcast. Our first guest is Hansel New. He is the Director of Sustainability programs at Dairy Farmers of America, and he has served in that position over the past five years. He has over 20 years of experience in the dairy industry. He has a bachelor's degree in Environmental health and safety from Oregon State University and an MBA and sustainability. Hansel, welcome to the podcast today.
Speaker 2:Thanks, Dan. Appreciate it. Thanks for having me
Speaker 1:On. Hey, you're welcome. Glad to have you. Our second guest is Chad Heiser. Chad is the president of LE North America. Chad has been with LEI over 20 years and has worked with a handful of other agriculture equipment companies. His company Lei, is one of the leaders in dairy technology solutions across the globe, LE Manufacturers, robotic Milking, feeding, and Animal Care Solutions. Chad, welcome to the podcast today,
Speaker 3:Dan. Thank you. Great to be with you today.
Speaker 1:Oh, yes, likewise. Thanks for joining us. Let's jump right into the discussion of this fascinating study and collection of data about the dairy industry and the environment. Hansel, I'm gonna start the first question with you. Tell us about the origin of this white paper and the Dairy Farmers of America's involvement in it.
Speaker 2:Sure. Happy to. So it really started with a conversation that we had with, uh, aem, the Association of Equipment Manufacturers. They had published a, a really, a fascinating paper on the benefits of precision agriculture, which, uh, was really, was really data driven. It, it told agriculture's good story, particularly for North America. And, uh, they approached us with this idea of, Hey, what if we did something similar for the dairy industry that looked at not only the, uh, the great efficiencies and animal care improvements that have been made for the, for the, for the herds themselves, but also kind of the whole picture, the everything from growing the crops all the way through manure management on the, on the back end, you could say. And we, we were really struck with the idea of, you know, being, um, a leading dairy cooperative here in, in the us. You know, we represent over 6,000 member farms and, um, we, we understand that dairy is doing a great job. They have a good story to tell. And, uh, really bringing something together like this study that's really data driven, that that helps, uh, combat some of the negative narratives that are out there from some groups about dairy, was really just a win-win. So we were, we were excited to participate.
Speaker 1:What was the overarching objective that you were trying to accomplish with this study?
Speaker 2:Yeah, it was pretty basic. The, the goal was to quantify the environmental benefits of modern dairy production practices. Again, not just the, the, the animals themselves and the herds, although there have been a lot of efficiencies and improvements on that site as well. Everything from herd genetics to, to forge quality, et cetera. But also the practices and the technologies that have helped make that happen.
Speaker 1:Sure. Yeah. Well, that's fascinating. And, uh, Chad, let me jump to you for a question. How did you first learn about this effort and what role did your company lately play in it?
Speaker 3:Yeah, sure. No, I think Hansel touched on an important point. Uh, you know, being a member, uh, being an equipment, uh, oriented company, were, were a, a strong partner with the aem, uh, as a member. Uh, and, and as equipment companies, we're always looking for ways to, to hold up and, and share the, the practices along with how the equipment and the technology, uh, is assisting our, our customers, our mutual customers in this case, as Hansel might, uh, might also agree, uh, and a lot of the, the good things that they've been doing over the years and what really could happen into the future. So that, that first study that that was mentioned, you know, the, the environmental benefits of precision agriculture was really the kind of the starting point. Uh, and that idea was brought to our dairy leadership group, uh, which is represented by myself and, and several other of my dairy equipment peers. Uh, and we talked about what, what this could really look like. And what really got us excited, not only was, was the data-driven, uh, results that we thought we would, we would see through the study, but really finding, um, strategic partners across the dairy space. Um, because one of the opportunities I think we all start to recognize is that we have a strong message to help our producers tell. Uh, and whether that comes from the, the cooperative side as, as Hansel mentioned, whether that comes from us as equipment manufacturers and partners for those producers, uh, along with several others, uh, you know, national Milk Producers Federation, so some of the legislative side of the work that goes on, um, we all have the same goal in mind, and that's what we wanna hold up and, and really highlight the, the strong environmental and and benefits that, uh, that our producers are really working hard on every day on their, on their operations across North America.
Speaker 1:Yeah. And, and for this question is for the two of you, why was this project important?
Speaker 3:Maybe I'll, I'll start. I think from an importance level, what one of the, the opportunities that, that we see is that as we, we look into the future, the, the fundamental of of agriculture hasn't changed over the years. And that's to produce, you know, a high, high quality nutritional products to feed a world population. Uh, we know that population's gonna grow, uh, and we know we're going to be doing it with less producers. Uh, you know, if you look at the total number of producers both here in North America and even around the world that are gonna be responsible for producing that, that high quality nutritional dietary need, um, they need a strong voice. Um, and, and they take great responsibility in that. But we as partners for them also feel, uh, quite, uh, quite, uh, important in, in helping them do that as well. So for us, it, it really became a, an opportunity to, to bring light to the, the good things that are going on across our operations and specifically our dairy operations here in North America.
Speaker 1:Sel, anything you want to add to that?
Speaker 2:Yeah, Chad<laugh>. Chad, you kinda took the words out of my mouth. I mean, the, the, you know, the dairy industry is, uh, takes that responsibility of, of, of responsibly feeding the world seriously, uh, with high quality, nutritious products. And, and we know that over time, not only have, have we seen in the past through, through past environmental studies that the dairy industry continues to do more with less, but with the, the, the strong demands from really a global scale to increase sustainability while also letting consumers get more insights into what agriculture is actually doing. Cause a lot of times it feels like the different groups are just talking past each other. And so having a study like this that, um, really backs up and looks at what are the improvements have been made, and then where are we going? Where are the, where are the continued efficiencies going to come from and how does the agriculture community, and more specifically the dairy community contribute to that is, is really important. And I think this art, this study helps articulate well.
Speaker 1:So, Chad and Hansel, a couple months ago, I was on a pretty good size, uh, dairy. Uh, we were there for work for a Topcon project. And, um, I was really struck by the efficiencies that the dairy was using, the professionalism that was going on. And, you know, the, the messaging that we're kind of hearing all the time about, um, being bad for the environment and, and different messaging like that, it was a stark contrast. What I was seeing happening on that dairy was just completely opposite than, than what I'm hearing, like in, in mainstream media. So, um, I wanna talk to you and ask a little bit about, uh, some of the myths of modern day dairy practices. And, um, lemme start off with this first question, cuz there's a common misconception that dairy farming is bad for emissions, bad for water, bad for land usage, and that methane from cattle is ruining the environment. Can you tell me some of the report findings that debunk this thought process?
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. Happy to take a, a first, first swing at that. Well, well, first of all, I mean, to your point, Dan, being able to just get out on a dairy farm and experience that I think is, um, a, a rare privilege and an opportunity that, that not a lot of dairy consumers, uh, consumers in largely large urban environments just don't have that opportunity. And so what they perceive about the dairy industry can be very skewed based on what they're reading and social media or, or getting from news sources, et cetera, and really seeing is believing. And so for, for our cooperative, being able to get our, our customers, and in sometimes cases even, uh, young consumers like school groups out on dairy farms, is, is always, is always gonna help the cause, right? Mm-hmm.<affirmative> because you see the cows, how they're cared for and everything. And that's, that's just really an, a positive and encouraging story as far as how this study, um, kind of pushes back against some of the, the, the myths or the misperceptions that are out there. It, it does so on a variety of levels. Well, first of all, for, for us, dairy consumption, um, it should go without saying, but, but dairy is not, uh, one of the largest emitters, uh, in the us. The epa, uh, and US dairy industry studies both articulate the fact that US dairy is about 2% or less of, of us emissions. So when you look at the transportation industry, uh, the energy industry, which is well above 30% of emissions, things that people do every day in their, uh, in their lives are, are going to, at the end of the day, contribute much more to, uh, contributing, to putting more global warming and gases into the atmosphere than the dairy industry. That, that said, yeah. That said, this, this study really does kind of go to the next level of detail and highlights just some of the, the, the really good lifecycle assessment work, uh, these kind of science driven, uh, farm to table studies that have been done over the years. It really demonstrates, uh, that, that earlier point that I made, that the dairy industry just continues to, to get more efficient and continues to do more with less. I mean, from, I'll give you two quick examples from one of the things that this AEM study highlights is, is a study that was, that looked at the last basically 50, 60 years of production from the end of World War ii 1944 to, uh, to the two thousands. And there was a, on a per gallon of milk basis or or unit of consumption basis, greenhouse gases dropped 63% over that period of time. More recently, over the last decade, there was a study that was published in 2019, I believe that was also highlighted in this AEM paper where, you know, US dairy producers produce 16% more milk, they use 17% less feed to, to produce that milk, about 30% less water, and further reduce their drink greenhouse gas emissions by an additional 10%. So we see those trends continuing and the, the, the, the data and the narrative from this AEM study really helped paint that picture.
Speaker 1:Anything you want to add to that, Chad?
Speaker 3:I, I, I think Hansel touched on a lot of important points. Maybe the, the one thing I would add is, is, you know, I, I've always, you know, coming from a farming background myself, I've always considered farmers to be the, the original sustainability minded individuals that we've always understood as farmers, as agriculture, that our livelihood comes from the natural resources that we're in. You know, we're stewarding, whether that's land, whether that's water, whether that's livestock or animal stock, um, that, that's our livelihood, that that's, that's our producer's livelihood. That's what, you know, ultimately is part of their economic model, uh, that, that we've known. So, so as we look at and, and, and we think about the generations that we're now in, um, the reality is helping tell that story to a, a growing consumer base who's one, two, now, maybe even three or four generations removed from really truly understanding what production agriculture looks like. How does a gallon of milk, how does a pound of, of, of, you know, beef, whatever that food stock might be, end up on a grocery store shelf, that process that, that, that supply chain, that, that integration o of of those things. When you, when you talk about stepping onto a modern dairy today and looking at the practices that they use, whether that's how they manage their feed stock, whether that's how they, you know, care for their animals and the animal wellbeing and comfort, um, all of those things are intentional, uh, decisions that our producers make knowing that those are going to benefit, ultimately the output, which is a healthier animal, uh, a more sustainable environmental footprint. Um, and, and the numbers that Hansel mentioned, you know, in terms of greenhouse gas reductions, um, I'll, I'll add one to it. You know, since, since the end of World War II approximately, you know, we're, we're, we're producing more milk with about 16 million less cows as just a, just as an example. And that's over a long period of time. Mm-hmm. But if, even if you translate that over the last 15 years, and you look at, um, you know, the, the same amount of milk today is being produced with almost a million less cows, about just over 900,000 cows. Um, so, so we're, we're continuing to find ways to integrate all forms of agricultural, um, practices, whether that's in the field, whether that's in animal genetics, uh, to bring those together to, to, to really make the, the product that's on the store shelves the highest quality. To do it in a sustainable and responsible manner and understand the circularity of, of agriculture is something that we've always managed. Uh, we're just able to manage that in a, in a far better, more precise way today through modern technology, modern equipment, data, uh, and things that make the producer just a better, a better overall steward of, of the resources.
Speaker 1:Mm. It's funny, Chad, you, you were talking about sustainability and just a, a couple weeks ago, uh, before Christmas, um, I was actually on site and we were talking with one of our customers about this idea of sustainability. And as sustainability has become a buzzword, uh, across a lot of industries, uh, it's funny, when you talk to far, sometimes they feel like they've been in the sustainability business forever. This is not a new thing to them. This is what they do, what they have done Yeah. For centuries. And all of a sudden, the rest of the world has caught on that all of a sudden this is an important thing. And, um, you know, to them it's like, what's just what I do? It's what I do. It's what my dad did, it's what my grandfather did. It's just what we do. So,
Speaker 3:And, and, and that evolution, if I can add one, that evolution of, of those practices, what my grandfather did was what he knew and what was available to them at the time, whether that's through the equipment they had available, through information, through the practices. And as, as we evolve with all of those things I just mentioned, you know, generations continue to carry on that legacy. They're just able to do it with new and better tools. And that's what's exciting about not only where we're at today, but what we think's gonna happen into the future.
Speaker 1:Hansel, were you gonna add something there? I didn't mean to cut you off.
Speaker 2:No, I was just agreeing with what Chad was saying. I mean, very well put. Um, and, and something we try to emphasize all the time that, that dairy farmers are the original stewards of the land, and they've been at this for generations. Um, we've got a lot of members who have been farming for 3, 4, 5 generations now. And it's just, it's just what they've always done. So when they hear sustainability, uh, they just, we, we just help them understand sustainability that, Hey, you folks have been on this journey, right? You've been doing it, you've been proving it. You wouldn't be farming this many generations later if you hadn't been doing it sustainably.
Speaker 1:Yeah. Uh, Chad, you kind of touched on this, but um, I want to ask it in a more direct way. How has the industry improved over the last 15 years?
Speaker 3:Yeah, well, well, you know, that's, that's, I've, I've had a front row seat to that, uh, certainly with within my time here at lately over the last plus 15 years. Uh, and, and I've watched even just in that short period of time, so many things evolve and change. Um, you know, if, if you think about the, the, the, the, the circularity, so I could touch on a lot of different aspects, but I'll just pick on a couple. Um, you know, I mentioned the, the, you know, the, the idea that today we're producing as much fluid milk today as we were 15 years ago, and we're doing it with, with, you know, over 900,000 less animals. Um, and if you think about all the things that go around the, the, the production process of, of creating a, a a hundred weight or a gallon or a liter of milk, um, you know, you can touch on so many aspects of, of, of improvement. Um, you know, if you think about, you know, water and feed are the two most important aspects that go into a dairy animal, that, that somewhat predict the output or the quality of the product that, that she's going to produce. You know, what we're seeing today, um, with the, with the, the performance of, of the animal in terms of, of feed efficiencies, um, you know, being able to feed to genetic potential of the animal things that, that we're space, age, and not even dreamed of, you know, 15 years ago, we're now able to do today. And do it in a way that, that, honestly, in some cases, when you, when you talk about being on farms, when you have those conversations with some of our producers in the early stages, they, they kind of scratch their head, um, because it's, it's things that they've probably thought about and thought, wow, if I had just had the ability to do this, I could take the next step in my operation towards sustainability or, or more efficiency or whatever that goal might be. Um, so you think about, you know, the, the less animals, um, you know, I'll go back to that greenhouse gas cause that tends to be a, a, a big topic and every one that, you know, people think about, you know, in the last 15 years, this study quantifies that we've been able to remove what's the equivalent of 4 million automobiles permanently from the road, just through better management practices in, in, in, in how we, you know, grow our feedstocks, how we feed the animals, how we handle the byproducts to come out of that animal, that circularity piece that I mentioned. Um, that is a significant reduction and, and we're doing as much as we possibly can, but we also know that there's more to do. We believe the low hanging fruit over the last 15 years, ha has definitely been, been captured. We know there's more to do, uh, and we're excited because we believe the equipment, the technology, and the data are gonna allow us to continue to unlock those opportunities.
Speaker 1:Hansel, let me go go this way with you. Let me ask you this question. Hansel. Uh, with all these myths about modern day dairy practices, how does the agriculture community get this positive message out to our culture and our world?
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's a great question, and I think the answer lies in a couple different things. One is, it's, it's always, the message is always best delivered when it comes from folks who consumers trust. And nobody is more trusted than farmers. Uh, you know, people may not, may not trust their government, they may not trust, uh, business, but at the end of the day, there's a lot of trust going back to, to farmers and, and having a study like this help explain what farmers have been doing. So taking all those, those great stories and aggregating them and putting them out there in a way that really helps tell the farmer's story first and foremost. And, you know, I think, I think it makes it more relatable because folks can then say, okay, well this is a, this is a family operation, right? All the, all the talk about, you know, uh, big ag or industrial agriculture, that, that, that's another one of those, uh, myths that's easy to debunk. I mean, these are, these are family operations, um, regardless of size, whether they're milking 50 cows or 5,000 cows, these are run by families. Um, and so having the farmer's story, um, in that, in that narrative, it's, it's going to help a lot in, in making that that case to, to consumers. Another thing is just making sure it's, it's scientific and it's data driven. I mean, there's, there's so much emotion out there around, uh, well, this is good for you, or this is bad for you, or, here, here are the current trends, or, or the, you know, what, what pop culture is, is saying as far as, um, what's good or what's bad. But ultimately, you know, us in the industry who, who are living this day in and day out and who are working really hard to support our, our member owners who are really the heroes who are out there doing this day in, day out, out on their family operations. Um, it really comes back to the, to the science and the data and telling that story in a way that is, again, relatable, that, um, breaks it down into a way where it can, people can wrap their heads around that and it can be chunked up into smaller bits. You know, I wouldn't take this full study and just throw it out there in front of consumers today, right? But, but there's so many great nuggets and insights that, uh, now because of this study, we can, we can package up, we can use it to start conversations. And I think that's ultimately where progress is gonna come, is using, using real stories and real insights from the dairy industry to help connect with consumers, to help have a dialogue and, and tell that story. Cuz otherwise it comes back to we're just not communicating very well.
Speaker 1:Right? Yeah. Yeah. We definitely have a lot of work to do. Uh, but yeah, those are great insights. Hansel. Let, let's move the conversation now to technology and, um, and so I wanna ask this to Chad. Chad, I, your company has some amazing futuristic products, uh, when a lot of people, mainstream people, like my neighbors think about farms, they usually think about, uh, kind of old guys, kind of outdated. He has a flip phone, drives an old truck, he's just kind of, time has passed him by. And yet your company is making the state of the art, um, very modern robotic solutions that these dairies are using that, uh, to the average person, they would just probably have no idea that, that there's this kind of technology. So how has modern technology improved overall efficiency and decision making on the farm?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I, you know, it, it, uh, your, your description is, is quite accurate. Cuz in some cases, some days I wake up and, and can't believe what what I'm seeing across the industry. And certainly we're, we're, we're excited to be a strong contributor, but, but there's so many great equipment companies out there across agricultural space that are, that are working in this precision way in their own rights, uh, as, as we all strive to help the producers be more efficient. Um, so if you look across, you know, and focus a little bit back on the dairy side, um, you know, when you, when you think about the, the process, uh, that goes on in, in today's modern dairies, um, you know, we we're, we're we're challenged, you know, by a lot of things. You know, uh, farmers are always, you know, challenged by things that they can't control. Whether, um, you know, commodity mar things, things that, that they just know are, are, are considerations and, and dynamics that they will deal with. Um, so one of the things that, that we talk a lot with producers about is what, what are some of the things that we can support and, and, and help them be in better control of or more efficient with? So we talk about labor issues. We know labor is probably the single biggest c concern most dairies have today. Uh, if you look at, at conventional dairy practices, um, you know, it takes a certain amount of labor that just isn't available, or the cost or quality of that labor has been very challenging over certainly the last few years. So we, we get into situations where, you know, as producers start looking toward their future, they start asking themselves, okay, what can I do and how can I do this differently to, to benefit? First and foremost, uh, we always put the animal at front and center, um, because we know if we take care of her and do it well, um, we're gonna have a, a better operation. We're gonna help the producer hopefully achieve whatever their goals might be. Um, so when you look at it, whether that's in robotic milking systems where, you know, we allow the animal to, to make her own free choice as to when, when she's milked throughout a 24 hour cycle, um, the amount of data that we collect about that animal during that milking process, um, you know, we, we get into robotic feeding. Uh, so we start to think about how do we precision feed animals. Um, I mentioned genetic potential earlier here. Um, you know, the ex one of the really exciting things that we're starting to really start to see and unlock is how do we make, and how do we put a, a, a process for a piece of equipment that can deliver, feed in a precision way that allows that animal to, to consume and digest that more efficiently. If you do that more efficiently, you, you lower your feed costs, you, you increase the, the wellbeing of the animal, you, you've more than likely increased her, her overall output, um, and you increase her longevity. So you just have an overall healthier animal. Um, all of those things can, can be tremendously impactful, you know, and they are today and certainly in the future when we think about how we're going to have to, to do more with less, I think Hansel said that a, a moment ago, how do we, how do we consider, you know, continuing to grow our, our output of, of agricultural products that we know we're gonna be in demand for, for a growing population, and yet do it with limited or more limited resources. Um, you know, and those types of things. We, we certainly believe the equipment that's available to us, whether that's in the barn, outside of the barn, is, is playing a strong role today. And we'll play a, a, a key role into the future in, in order to achieve those goals that, uh, that we collectively have as an industry.
Speaker 1:With full disclosure, some of our listeners may know this, but, uh, Topcon is in the management feed management business and we have a lot of, uh, feeding solutions that are in, in dairies all across the country. But, uh, Hansel, I wanna ask you, uh, what are some of the specific improvements in the productivity levels that are the direct result of using, you know, feed management, uh, solutions and technology or milking solutions? What are you seeing as specific improvements that are helping productivity?
Speaker 2:Sure. Dan, maybe just a couple specific examples. One is in what I'll call herd management software, where farms can, um, track even movement of their, of their herd on an ongoing basis. Their, their taking their inputs, like their feed cost, their feed quality, their, uh, their, their ration and forage. And really using a platform like a herd management software to really dive deep and to get those insights that are just gonna help them get smarter and better over time. Another specific technology on the feed side, cuz we know that feed and or what we could call forage quality is one of the most important aspects in, in doing more with less and in keeping costs down and ensuring that that animal is just getting optimum nutrition for, for her daily needs. Um, one of the fairly simple but pretty game-changing technologies out there that's being more widely adopted is using infrared dry matter analyzers so that producers can get a much better sense of what's the, what's the true level of dry matter that I'm feeding these animals. Uh, because that can, that can vary so much. Even with you're pour, you know, you're pulling corn silage out of your, your storage on a day-today basis. There could still be a lot of varieties in the day-to-day moisture content. And so getting near instantaneous readings from these, um, near infrared dry analyzers is really helping producers to optimize, uh, and control their costs while ensuring that those animals are getting the top nutrition that they need in order to be the, the superstars that they really are for these dairy operations.
Speaker 1:And Hansel, where are these sensors in the process, these near infrared sensors? Are they on the mixer or where are they at? A,
Speaker 2:A lot of'em, uh, some of'em are portable today. Um, oh, okay. There's, there's some that look basically like a, a large coffee mug that has a lid on it and you go up to your silage pile or your total mixed ration, you pull a scoop into this analyzer and you've got a result within a matter of minutes instead of waiting hours to, to dry a sample in a lab.
Speaker 1:Wow, that's fascinating that, that kind of technology is available today. Cuz like we were talking, you know, generations ago for grandpa and further generations, they never had that kind of ability to, to get that kind of data and make decisions like that. Yeah, and
Speaker 2:It's, and it's relatively low cost too. I mean, when we talk about technology on dairy farms, uh, there's a whole range, right? It can be very, very simple things that are just, uh, newer that are going to make a, a profound difference on how a farm can get better data and to get those insights to just continue that, that continuous improvement process all the way up to the other end where you're making, uh, really significant investments in investing in the future of your operation for the next 20, 30, 50 years, uh, the way things are going.
Speaker 1:Yeah. Let's segue now into the, the future. And let me ask you this, Chad, what might these findings suggest about the future of the dairy industry?
Speaker 3:Well, I, it's, it's a great question. I think it was at the, at the heart of, of kind of our thought when this study was put together because we wanted to be able to quantify and really look back in, in the last, let's say, 15 years and say, what have we been able to achieve with the technology that was available throughout that period of time where we're at today? But then ultimately put, put a little bit of a, a crystal ball out there to say, what could this look like? Um, you know, I I think Hansel touches on something that's, that's, that's critically important. Um, because one of the things that we, we feel is that there's gonna become a very common language across all ag operations and specifically dairy operations. And that's gonna be, there's more and more data, uh, available to us, whether it's it's data coming from, from simple, you know, um, infrared, dry matter, um, devices as Hansel discussed all the way to, you know, fully autonomous, you know, types of equipment that are, that are available to, to dairy producers today. Um, the one thing I can tell you about the equipment industry is we're gonna continue to innovate on what we call the, the, I call the nuts and bolts so that that equipment, uh, really begins, you know, it has, uh, started to open up and unlock things that even 15 years ago we didn't probably even dream were possible. So I can tell you, as the equipment manufacturers, uh, we, we all are gonna continue to strive to innovate on the equipment side because the equipment is really be more, becoming more of a conduit to, to the, what I'm gonna call the common language. And that's gonna be data, uh, and data and the availability, the, the variety of data that that is available not only today, but into the future for these producers to make better decisions about the animal, about the, the sustainability goals they might have, you know, whether it's out in the fields or on the backend side of, of how they're managing the waste, uh, streams coming out of the barn. Um, there's some exciting technology that's out there when we start to really look at that, that that output that, uh, that byproduct flow coming out of the barns and, and the nutritional, you know, um, benefits that it bring not only putting it back into the farm, but ultimately as, as an additional revenue stream or a cost offset. Um, so you start to think about some of the circularity ideas there. Um, but data really becomes an, in our, in my opinion, I think we start to see this generally across industry, um, the, the common language that we need to bring and continue to bring together for these producers so that they can make better decisions, again, whether it's about the animal, about their operation, about the environment. Um, so, so I think if you look ahead, uh, there's gonna continue first and foremost to be innovation and equipment. We see that across the entire economy, whether that's in, in consumer electronics, whether that's in automobiles, whether that's in agricultural equipment, we're gonna continue to see innovation and the, and the pace of that is only going to quicken, uh, if, if the last 15 years or any indication, um, we're in for quite some interesting times in the, in the next 15 years. So, uh, that's gonna continue to happen, but data we believe will, will absolutely be the common denominator, uh, for us to continue to unlock, you know, future opportunities.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's fascinating. Uh, Hansel, let me ask you a final question. What should our future generations know and what can they do to ensure that we see continued improvement in this area?
Speaker 2:Well, first of all, I, I'll just echo what, what Chad mentioned as well, that e equipment and re really equipment and investments in, in technology are just ways to not only boost efficiency, but to, to get to more data, um, so that farmers can have the tools and really understand the, the, the, the broad spectrum of everything that's happening on their pro operations for future generations. I'll also mentioned that,
Speaker 1:Uh, so let me, I didn't mean to Yeah, sorry, sorry to interrupt you, but I, I, I, what I hear you saying is so that they can really make better decisions. Yeah, absolutely. Right? Isn't that, that they, they use the data to help them make better decisions.
Speaker 2:And, and really I think this, this AEM study, one of the things that helped point out is the fact that in order to advance on the, the road that we all see agriculture and, and dairy in North America on, uh, we're, we're going to need ongoing support also, whether that's, uh, infrastructure to, to help all of this new technology, like rural broadband is a, is a big conversation right now. How do you, how do you ensure that these producers in a lot of times remote rural environments, um, have access to the infrastructure necessary to, to make that technology work for their operation? Right. Uh, I think part of that's also gonna be, uh, working with, uh, government and industry on policies that are gonna reward this innovation as it goes on. So, um, you know, to be able to get to, to full adoption of ensuring that the best technology is getting the hand to producers who are going to get the most benefit out of that, it's, it's really going to take a lot of effort across the industry and, and working across the aisle, if you will, uh, with government as well, to ensure that farmers are well supported and that they're, they're in a good position to grow and diversify their farmer income in all this as well. Mm-hmm.
Speaker 1:<affirmative>. So there's still a lot of work to do, but, uh,
Speaker 2:Still a lot of work to do. Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Chad and Hansel, thanks so much for joining us and walking us through this data. I mean, it's, it's very fascinating, I think to our listeners, I know to me, uh, to people in the industry to learn more and see the results of this study for yourself. You can visit newsroom.aem.org and click the article called Environmental Benefits of Modern Dairy Study Unveiled. There's a link also in this episode, and I want to thank each of our listeners for tuning in today. Topcon appreciates all of our friends in agriculture who work tirelessly to put food on our tables, farmers. You are the best. We love you. If you enjoyed this episode, remember to, like, share, subscribe to Topcon Talks Agriculture on Spotify, apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts. Please tell your friends about us. We'd love for you to follow Top cod agriculture on social media. Thanks again for joining us today. See you next time. Go out and make it a great day.