FARM Program Releases Environmental Reference Manual, Drug Residue Manual, Stockmanship Training Video
May 8, 2017
The National Dairy FARM Program released several farm-focused materials in April, each focused on one of its three pillars: Environmental Stewardship, Antibiotic Stewardship and Animal Care. All of the materials are now available on the FARM Program website.
In celebration of Earth Day on April 23, the FARM Program’s Environmental Stewardship (ES) module released its first-ever guide, the Environmental Stewardship Continuous Improvement Reference Manual, in cooperation with the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. The guide provides a comprehensive suite of on-farm management practices to reduce a farm’s environmental footprint and improve its profitability. Specifically, the manual features a detailed explanation of the Environmental Stewardship module, as well as strategies to reduce on-farm greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in various areas of farm management, including feed, manure, energy, forage and animal health.
From its Antibiotics Stewardship pillar, FARM launched the 2017 edition of the Milk and Dairy Beef Drug Residue Prevention Manual, the primary educational tool for dairy managers about the judicious, responsible use of antibiotics and how to prevent drug residues in milk and meat. The newest edition now identifies drugs subject to the newly implemented Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD), and contains updated industry data on the declining presence of antibiotic residues found in milk.
Finally, to help animal handlers improve their stockmanship skills, FARM Animal Care and the National Beef Quality Assurance program jointly released a training video, now on the FARM Program website. The 27-minute video is divided into several chapters and multiple choice questions to test viewers on the content. The video can serve as a training resource to satisfy the FARM Animal Care Version 3.0 requirement for annual employee training.
For any questions regarding these materials, please contact Beverly Hampton.
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