When farmers say every day is Earth Day they really mean it. In order for a farm to be passed down, to be sustainable, the farmer has to be a good steward of their land. The progress of raising the same amount of food and fiber with fewer inputs and resources is a testament to farmers and their attention to the principles of Earth Day.
Through diligence in the dairy industry, cows today produce sixty percent more milk using sixty-four percent fewer cows than fifty years ago. The lowering of their carbon footprint doesn’t end there. A gallon of milk produced today can also be made using ninety percent less land.
Reusing and recycling are part of a dairy farm’s daily routine. Some catch and reuse wash water where they can. Cow manure may sound bad, but it is liquid gold to a farmer. It can be spread on crop fields as fertilizer or dried and used as bedding for cows. Some farms are processing the waste in order to create electricity through the use of biodigesters. One of my friends recycles theirs in the form of plant pots called Cow Pots.
Dairy farmers believe in living green because it isn’t something they want to do it is something they are already doing for the sake of their farm and because of the economic benefits it brings to them.
Celebrate Earth Day with a tip of your hat to the farmers. Think of them at mealtime and remember they want a future for their land and family just like you do.
Farmer Bright 
Great post. It drives me nuts how well-meaning but ignorant do-gooders rant about ranchers destroying the land. They don’t seem to understand that ranchers care for the environment as their means of livelihood. I’m sure the same is true of dairy farming. And love your misty morning photo, like a painting.
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That’s why it important for farmers and ranchers to speak up and give an accurate representation of what we do.
That picture is one of my current favs. Thank you!
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