FARM Program Partners with Cargill, Others for Safety and Calf Care
May 4, 2021
The FARM Program partnered with Cargill to launch the Actionable Safety Review on April 1.
The safety review is a new online tool that enables dairy farmers to identify and review opportunities to improve safety on the farm. Farmers filling it out are prompted to consider their own operations and make note of their approach to specific safety topics. The tool offers recommendations and resources for farmers to follow-up on those topics. Dairy farmers who complete the safety review will receive a copy of their responses to serve as a list of farm-specific action items designed to keep employees, farmers, and families safe on the dairy.
May’s focus will be on the Calf Care & Quality Assurance (CCQA) program. CCQA is the first, collaborative educational tool that provides guidelines for calf raisers. The CCQA program is jointly led by the FARM program and NCBA’s Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) program, funded by the beef checkoff. Support was also provided by the Dairy Calf and Heifer Association, and the beef checkoff-funded Veal Quality Assurance (VQA) program.
A reference manual sets the foundation for the CCQA program, which has been developed with the understanding of the diversity of calf-raising enterprises and is science- and outcomes-based while maintaining facility type and size neutrality. While the practices identified in the manual are not the only practices that can meet the desired outcomes, the program provides a framework that will serve as great resource for anyone working in the calf-raising industry.
In addition to the manual, the CCQA program will roll out producer-focused training modules that will certify producers in the principles of excellent calf care highlighted throughout the manual later in 2021.
Download PDF
