SYRACUSE, N.Y. – As part the dairy industry’s commitment to sustainable production and building consumer trust in dairy, American Dairy Association North East, Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program and Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay partnered with Kurtland Farms, Elverson, Pa., to plant 326 trees on more than one acre.
The partnership involves promoting on-farm riparian buffers along waterways to help keep water clean and improve quality in local streams that lead into the Chesapeake Bay.
“Projects like this help raise consumer awareness of dairy farmers’ commitment to sustainability and to protecting local waterways in the Chesapeake Bay watershed,” said ADA North East CEO John Chrisman. “Assuring consumers that dairy farmers are putting environmental issues at the top of their priority list goes a long way in building trust in the milk they’re producing. “
Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program Chair Lolly Lesher added, “By working with conservation groups like the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay, dairy farmers are keeping their eyes on the future, ever mindful of taking the best care of the environment as they produce nutritious food for the community.”
Assisted by a dozen volunteers from The Hershey Company and Land O’Lakes dairy cooperative, saplings were planted along a headwaters creek of the Conestoga River on Kurtland Farms. Funding for the project was made possible through grants awarded to the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay and its partners. In 2023, the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay will plant more than 14,000 of 45,000 trees on Pennsylvania dairy farms.
This work is helping dairy farmers achieve a shared U.S. dairy commitment of greenhouse gas neutrality – or better – by 2050.
Learn more about ADA North East’s conservation efforts at https://www.americandairy.com/trees.
Kurtz Photo caption: Jared Kurtz of Kurtland Farms, Elverson, Pa., plants one of the 300+ trees that were part of a riparian buffer on his family farm in partnership with American Dairy Association North East, Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program and the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay.
Group Photo caption: The Kurtz family of Kurtland Farms, Elverson, Pa., partnered with American Dairy Association North East, Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program and the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay, along with volunteers from the Hershey Company and Land O’ Lakes, to plant 326 trees for a riparian buffer to protect local waterways leading into the Chesapeake Bay.
About American Dairy Association North East
American Dairy Association North East (ADA North East) is the dairy farmer-funded organization funded by participating dairy farmer’s checkoff investment to build demand and sales for milk and dairy foods throughout the local region. Representing nearly 9,000 dairy farm families in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and northern Virginia, ADA North East develops and implements local programs to drive milk and dairy sales at retail outlets and in schools. The organization also conducts consumer education about dairy through events, traditional and social media, and in collaboration with health professionals through National Dairy Council®. ADA North East works closely with Dairy Management Inc.™, the national dairy checkoff organization, to support nutrition research, national partnerships and developing export markets for dairy to bring a fully integrated promotion program to the region. For more information, visit www.AmericanDairy.com, or call 315.472.9143.
