Dairy Farmers of Canada's Award-Winning Sustainability Campaign Recognized Again by Global Community

Nov 29, 2023

OTTAWA, ON, - Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC)'s award-winning marketing campaign to promote the sustainability efforts of dairy farmers has been further recognized by the global community. Today, "Net Zero by 2050 – We're In" won Gold in the Best Marketing Campaign category of the World Beverage Innovation Awards at BrauBeviale in Nuremberg, Germany. The campaign was also shortlisted in the Best CSR/Sustainability Initiative category. "Net Zero by 2050 – We’re In” won Gold in the Best Marketing Campaign category of the World Beverage Innovation Awards at BrauBeviale in Nuremberg, Germany. (CNW Group/Dairy Farmers of Canada)

"We are grateful to once again accept international recognition for this great campaign that captures the hard work and dedication Canadian dairy farmers have made towards sustainability," said David Wiens, president of Dairy Farmers of Canada. "These awards demonstrate that organizations around the world see what we see: that our sector has a great story to tell, and we are proud to tell it."

Building upon years of progress, DFC made a commitment last year for the dairy industry to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The "We're In" campaign featured real farmers who have adopted sustainability practices for the benefit of their farms and the land around them. Complementing this work is DFC's digital campaign featuring "cow-influencer," Daisy and her Mini-Games, which was also shortlisted for the Best Marketing Campaign category. Daisy uses digital-first content on platforms popular with young millennials and Generation Z's, a demographic that is increasingly becoming the largest group of consumers in Canada.

"Our sustainability campaigns work in tandem to remind Canadians that caring for the environment is not new to the farmers behind their milk," said Pamela Nalewajek, DFC's Chief Marketing Officer, who was on hand in Germany to accept the award. "It's one of the many reasons why the Blue Cow logo is so trusted by consumers, and the dairy farmers behind this campaign are the real winners."

This is now the fourth international award DFC's "We're In" campaign has received. In October, it won the Innovation in Marketing & Communication Initiative Building Dairy category at the International Dairy Federation's Dairy Innovation Awards as part of the World Dairy Summit in Chicago, Illinois. In June, the campaign won two World Dairy Innovation Awards in the CSR/Sustainability Initiative category and the Marketing Campaign category at the Global Dairy Congress in London, England.

The 21^st annual World Beverage Innovation Awards recognizes the diversity and ingenuity of the global beverage industry. For more information on the awards, please visit https://www.foodbev.com/news/world-beverage-innovation-awards-2023-winners-announced/.

Source : Newswire.ca

Video: Turning Plant Defense Into a Management Strategy

Turning Plant Defense Into a Management Strategy

Understanding how a plant responds to stress is one thing.

Using that knowledge to make better management decisions is another.

Systemic acquired resistance, or SAR, is the plant's more direct defense response. When stress or infection occurs, the plant begins signaling throughout its system and preparing defensive compounds.

But if we know that response exists, can we help prepare the plant before the stress arrives?

The answer starts with understanding what triggers the response and what the plant needs to carry it out.

The Trigger and the Fuel

Salicylic acid plays an important role in triggering the SAR pathway.

Think of it as turning the truck on.

The engine may be running, but it still needs fuel to do the work.

In this case, manganese plays an important role in supporting the enzyme systems involved in the plant's defensive response.

This makes manganese status an important part of the conversation. Whether a producer is using tissue testing, sap analysis, or simply scouting for visible deficiency symptoms, the goal is to make sure the plant has adequate manganese available.

Manganese is required in relatively small amounts, but that does not make its role small.

If the plant receives a signal to defend itself but lacks the nutrition needed to support that response, it may struggle to carry out the process efficiently.

The trigger matters.

The fuel matters too.

Prepare Before the Stress Arrives

The best time to think about stress management is before the plant is overwhelmed.

Once a crop is already struggling, management can quickly turn into a game of catch-up.

This is similar to nitrogen management. Once a plant becomes severely deficient, correcting the problem does not necessarily erase the time and yield potential already lost.

Plant defense can work the same way.

Low-rate, targeted approaches designed to support the SAR pathway may fit best ahead of an expected stress event rather than after significant damage has already occurred.

That requires producers to think about predictable stress.

We may not know exactly what the weather will do tomorrow, but we generally know summer heat is coming. We know certain field conditions increase disease pressure. We know a herbicide application can temporarily stress a crop as the plant processes the chemistry.

Even a properly timed and labeled herbicide application can create a temporary response in the plant.

That does not mean the herbicide is bad.

Weeds can create significantly more yield loss than the temporary stress caused by controlling them.

The question is not whether we should eliminate every stressor.

The question is whether we can better prepare the plant to manage necessary and predictable stress.

Not All Stress Is Bad

Stress is a normal part of plant growth.

A perfectly stress-free environment does not exist in the field.

In fact, some stress is necessary for normal plant development. A plant responds to wind, temperature, moisture, sunlight, and countless other environmental signals throughout the season.

The environment is stress.

The plant's job is to manage it.

Problems begin when the stress load becomes greater than the plant's ability to respond.

Extreme heat, drought, high salt concentrations, disease pressure, and even certain management practices can add to that load.

This is where understanding SAR becomes useful.

Instead of waiting until the plant is visibly struggling, producers can begin identifying periods when stress is likely and make management decisions around those windows.

ISR Starts With the Soil

While SAR is a more direct defense response, induced systemic resistance, or ISR, brings the conversation back to soil health.

The longevity of a farm is closely connected to the health of its soil.

Carbon plays a major role because it supports biological life within the soil. Bacteria, fungi, and other organisms interact with plant roots and influence how the plant grows, accesses nutrients, and prepares for stress.

This is why soil health cannot be reduced to one product or one application.

It is a system.

Keeping living plants in the field longer can support biological activity. Cover crops may fit some operations. Better water management can improve soil conditions.