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Loveable farmer explains why he and thousands of others have pledged to go carbon neutral

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Milk brings so much joy to our everyday lives. It's the sweet creaminess in our cereal. The fluff in our scrambled eggs. And, for many, the last thing they drink before going to bed.

It's easy to forget that something most of us enjoy every day is also good for us as well. Milk alone delivers 13 essential nutrients that are important for adults and a vital part of children's diets.

While the dairy industry recognizes they still have a way to go, it has made an important pledge to work towards bettering the nation's environmental health.

Countless family farmers across the U.S. have committed to a more sustainable future. They know that it's good for the animals and also better for the planet.

"I love taking care of the cows; in taking good care of cows, we take care of you and it's better for the environment," Dave Graybill, a sustainable dairy farmer, and owner of Red Sunset Farm in Mifflintown, Pennsylvania, told Upworthy.

Thanks to modern and innovative dairy farming practices, producing a gallon of milk in 2017 required 30% less water and 21% less land than it did in 2007.

Taking a step back and looking at this progress on a macro level, the dairy industry has reduced its carbon footprint by 63% since 1944.

Now, the future looks even brighter because 37,500-plus dairy farm families — collectively working together under the U.S. Dairy banner — created new goals in 2020 that promise even more dramatic improvements. They pledge that by 2050 the dairy industry will achieve greenhouse gas neutrality and will have optimized water quality by promoting better utilization of manure and nutrients.

Farmers across the country have been working to meet these goals by reusing water, switching to sustainable cow feed, and repurposing manure for fertilizer.

The Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy is inspiring farmers by highlighting those who have made a serious commitment to reaching the industry's 2050 goals. Dave and his wife Marie were recently named a 2021 U.S. Dairy Sustainability Award Winner alongside other innovative farmers from across the industry.

Since starting their family farm two decades ago, the couple has implemented more than 30 conservation practices designed to make it an environmental and economic asset.

"We have implemented a lot of sustainability practices whether it's conserving water, conserving nutrients, taking better care of the cows," Dave told Upworthy. "You can look at sustainability in a lot of different ways."

"Another way we work to decrease our farm's carbon footprint is through better nutrition and animal care to help our cows live longer and produce more milk through improved feeding practices," he added.

When cows are healthy, it's better for the environment, too.

The Graybill's farm has a 700,000-gallon storage tank that holds a year's worth of nutrient-rich manure produced by their cattle. The manure is then used to fertilize his crops, which are used to feed the cows.

"We're just recycling nutrients all the time," Dave said. "That's efficiency. That's sustainability."

They also practice contour farming where crops are planted in rows that follow the natural lay of the land to ease erosion across the field. This helps protect the nearby Chesapeake Bay.

Dave hopes that his award will bring more attention to the wonderful developments happening in the industry. "Lots of farms are doing it, but not getting the recognition they deserve for doing good in their communities and implementing these practices," he admits.

The incredible work the Graybills and countless dairy farmers across the nation are doing for the environment proves that there is room for sustainability in every curve in the circle of life.

From Your Site Articles

Matt Nuckols wants you to know a thing or two about dairy farm life.

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This is Cinderella. But she's not a princess — she's a cow.

And not just any cow; Cinderella happens to be one of the most popular cows in all of Virginia.

Matt and Cinderella on the farm. Photo courtesy of Matt Nuckols/Eastview Farm.

Cinderella and her owner, dairy farmer Matt Nuckols, make regular appearances around the state. They’ve been to schools, agriculture clubs, competitions, state fairs, and more. Cinderella has even met the past five Miss Virginias and the governor's wife.

Matt and his cows are on a mission to show people, firsthand, what it's like to live and work on a dairy farm.

Eastview Farm has been in Matt's family for decades. It started as a more traditional operation in the mid-1940s — "kind of the Old MacDonald-type farm," Matt says — before his grandparents started the dairy portion of the business in 1955. The farm was passed to Matt's dad, F.C., and uncle, Wayne, who then passed it on to Matt and his cousin Taylor.

From left to right: Matt, Taylor, Elsie, Wayne, and F.C. Nuckols standing on their family farm in Beaverdam, Virginia. Photo courtesy of Eastview Farm.

The cousins have been working on the farm for as long as they can remember. "I started feeding calves as the first job I worked," Matt says. "I was about 5 or 6 years old."

Technically, F.C. and Wayne are retired now, but that doesn't really mean much. "My dad only works about 13 hours a day," Matt laughs. "They're cutting back."

This connection between family and farming is actually pretty common across the country. According to the 2012 census of agriculture, 98% of farms in America are family-owned and -operated.

Eastview Farm is a beautiful place to live, both for the Nuckols and for their cows. Photo courtesy of Matt Nuckols/Eastview Farm.

Matt also attends events so he can show people what a living, breathing farmer is like.

He aims to combat some of the stereotypical ideas about farming he hears from people, many of whom have never met a dairy farmer or been on a farm themselves.

Some of the places he and Cinderella go are full of other farmers, like fairs, competitions, and cow shows. But they also go to schools and colleges to talk about dairy farming.

Matt often takes cows out into the community to teach adults and kids alike about farming. Photo courtesy of Matt Nuckols/Eastview Farm.

"A lot of it is just getting to meet a farmer," says Matt. "People see we actually come in different sizes and shapes and accents and musical preferences."

Matt also lets the people he meets know his strong opinions on the way he runs his farm with respect to how milk is made, how it's shipped, and how the cows are treated.

One of the ways that Eastview Farm holds itself accountable for the animals' well-being is through the National Dairy FARM Program — a third-party reviewer that makes sure participating dairies handle their cows with care. And Matt isn't alone in that — 98% of the milk supply in the United States comes from dairies enrolled in FARM.

He hopes to be able to get those messages across whenever he can — but of course, it depends on the audience. "Young kids mostly just want to know how much the cows weigh and how old they are and stuff," Matt says.

The Nuckols often participate in events and interact with people who are curious about dairying. Photo courtesy of Matt Nuckols/Eastview Farm.

But with the parents and teachers who accompany them, Matt can open a direct dialogue about dairy practices, from antibiotics and organics to the size of the farm and beyond.

As long as people are willing to listen, Matt's going to keep talking about what he does.

"People want to know so much more about their food — where it comes from, how it got to the store, and how the cows are treated," Matt says. "And I know they're gonna get information from somebody. So we really want to get out there and give them the information ourselves."

Heroes

Running a dairy takes a whole lot of love — for the cows, the farm, and the Earth.

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“I didn’t go out in life saying I’m gonna marry a dairy farmer,” Leann Krainick laughs, “but Cupid had other ideas.”

Leann started out her agricultural career creating specific feeds for different farm animals. She met Mike Krainick when the two were introduced by a mutual friend (a bull insemination specialist, no less) and the rest is, well, the rest is our story.

Today, the two have been married 18 years, and together, they run Krainick Dairy in western Washington, a farm that Mike's grandfather started in 1912. They raise Holstein, brown Swiss, and Jersey cows — smallish brown cows that produce high-butterfat milk, used to make cheese, ice cream, and other dairy products.

They've been operating the dairy for more than a decade, and one reason they still enjoy it so much is because it offers them such variety in their lives. “The day is never the same," Leann says. "We try very hard to make it routine because that’s what cows like, but you always have to expect the unexpected.”

All images courtesy of Krainick Dairy.

If Leann loves anything as much as her husband, it's their cows.

She knows each of them individually — there are quiet ones, cranky ones, silly ones, and ones that cause trouble. “We can walk through the barn and just by knowing their different characteristics or their hierarchy in the herd, we can tell if something’s wrong," Leann says.

Like what, you ask? It could be a health problem or it could be a mess caused by one of the more mischievous members of the herd.

“They like to find trouble,” Leann laughs. "They've opened a gate in the middle of the night, gotten into our yard, managed to turn on the faucet, and flooded our basement."

It's the Krainicks' love for their animals that drives them to run their dairy in the most environmentally friendly way possible.

They care deeply not only about their own farm, but also about the welfare of animals and the environment in general.

“The first thing people say when they come here is that it’s very green,” Leann says. And that’s true in more ways than one.

The dairy farm is not only green in the picturesque sense, but also when it comes to its sustainability goals. In fact, the other thing that people notice when they arrive is the odor. The air doesn’t smell like cows or manure, but like beer.

“Farmers have been feeding spent grain from breweries to animals for over a century,” Leann says. And that's exactly what Krainick Dairy does. It's also why their farm often smells like beer. It’s a sustainable way for local breweries to get rid of their waste and it also cuts costs on feed for their cows because spent grain makes economical and environmental sense.

That's not the only way they are working to be more sustainable. Another practice became so successful it formed a new offshoot of their business.

When the facility that hauled away their manure became full, the Krainicks had to find another way to get rid of their waste. Instead of carting it away, they bought a machine that turned the waste into bedding for the cows and sustainable manure for the soil.

Not only do they use this soil on their own farm, but they also started packaging it and selling it to other growers after a local pumpkin farmer began swearing by it to grow his prize-winning giant pumpkins. Now, the Krainicks go to the giant pumpkin competition every year, where the huge gourds are tapped and filled with beer for the fairgoers before being brought home for — you guessed it — the Krainicks' cows to eat and turn into more of that prize-winning soil.

Leann and Mike's soil business is just the most recent green initiative in the long history of their dairy.

Krainick Dairy has been passed down through generations, and with each owner, "sustainability and environment, they've always been at the forefront," Leann says. Mike's father and grandfather each did what they could to develop the farm with better, more accurate practices.

To demonstrate that, Leann collects old farm equipment to show how different technologies have been invented and used throughout time as farmers tried to take better care of their animals and land. In just the same way, Leann and Mike are constantly looking for the next bit of technology that will move their farm forward.

Though times and technologies will change, and Krainick Dairy with it, there's one thing above all that is always at the heart of their dairy. "The number one is family," Leann says. "That's top of the list."

From Your Site Articles

Loveable farmer explains why he and thousands of others have pledged to go carbon neutral ›

Confused by what date labels on food products mean? Us, too. So we looked into it.

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Have you ever wondered what on Earth all of those "best before," "sell by," and "expiration" dates sprinkled on products actually mean?

Go into any grocery store, and you’ll be confronted with different dates on all kinds of food. Not only are there "best before" dates and "sell by" dates, there are also "harvest" dates and "shipping" dates, to name just a few.

If you’re simply trying to buy food that’s as fresh as possible, it’s hard to know what to pay attention to or what dates to trust.

Take "best before" labels, for example.

According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), food producers aren't required to put "expired by," "use by," or "best before" labels on their products, and if they do put an expiration date, FDA laws don't preclude the sale of food past it (with the exclusion of infant formula).

According to professional home economist Ellie Topp, most "best before" labels have nothing to do with food safety and everything to do with food taste. Food producers want to protect their brands, and ensuring their food is as delicious as possible is part of that. A package of noodles or a bag of tortilla chips eaten at a reasonable time after its "best before" date will most likely be perfectly safe to eat and taste the same. This is even true for eggs and dairy products.

We can't make the same promise for whatever is in that pot. Image via iStock.

Knowing that food labels aren't necessarily telling consumers what we think they are is one thing — actually using them to inform food-buying choices is another. Armed with my newfound label-reading skills, I hit up my favorite local grocery store for some necessities.

Here's what I learned, along with a few things you might want to keep in mind during your next trip to the grocery store:

1. Milk cartons usually display some iteration of a “sell by,” “best before,” or “freshest by” date, but the milk can last a lot longer than that if unopened.

Before Louis Pasteur invented pasteurization, fresh milk wouldn't last longer than a day or two before going off. Oh, how times have changed! Image via Heather Libby/Upworthy.

The date on this carton of lactose-free milk tells the shelf stockers at my local grocery store that it is good to sell until Dec. 8 if it is refrigerated properly. When it comes to living in my fridge, pasteurized milk can last quite a while longer if it's unopened (and then at least a week after it's opened). Pasteurized milk is one of the safest products out there. As a general rule — as long as it smells and tastes OK, it's fine to drink. And if it starts to sour, you can make these pancakes.

2. When it comes to eggs, "sell by" or "best before" doesn’t mean "throw me out."

This artfully photographed carton of eggs has its best days ahead of it. Image via Heather Libby/Upworthy.

Most cartons of eggs purchased from grocery stores are fresh and delicious even after the "sell by" date. The FDA says to eat eggs within three-five weeks of purchasing them. The sell-by date will likely pass during that time, but the eggs are still safe. Older eggs may not taste as fantastic as eggs fresh from the farm, but they're also not likely to make you sick either.

If for some reason you’re skeptical about the health of your eggs, there’s an amazeballs little test you can try — and you only need a glass of water to do it! Plop a questionable egg into the glass of water and watch what happens. A fresh egg will sink to the bottom; a not-so-fresh will float.

3. Canned goods are the one true post-apocalyptic food.

I received this can of "Spamalot"-branded Spam as a gift in 2008. I hope to give it to someone in my will. Image via Heather Libby/Upworthy.

In a famous zombie movie, the heroes sought out Twinkies as the perfect post-disaster food. Realistically, they should have been looking for canned goods. "Best before" dates on cans are to remind consumers of when the food inside them is still at its best. After that date, the food inside may lose some of its flavor but should still be safe to eat. As long as the cans aren't dented, swollen, or rusty, the USDA says they're "safe indefinitely as long as they are not exposed to freezing temperatures, or temperatures above 90 degrees."

Lack of clarity around food labels affects more than consumer food choices. It also has big implications for our landfills.

A 2013 study by the Natural Resources Defense Council found that confusing food date labels led to a lot of "perfectly good, edible food" being wasted in America. While most consumers were looking to date labels for information on food safety, the manufacturers were providing information about optimal food freshness instead. That difference is significant and can result in a lot of food being thrown out before it needs to be. According to their research, Americans throw out an average of $390 worth of food per person per year. For a family of four, that’s $1,560 per year — not to mention a lot of food going to waste unnecessarily in our landfills.

These stock-photo models look hopelessly confused. They shouldn't have to be. Image via iStock.

In an ideal world, choosing the safest, freshest food in the grocery store shouldn’t require a calendar or a cheat sheet.

Whether we realize it at the time or not, we’re putting a lot of thought into the food we bring into our homes and put on our plates. Coupled with education programs around food safety and waste, simple and standardized food labels could be a way of helping us make safer, fresher choices that keep still-good food out of landfills.

Until that happens, there’s always the sniff test.

milk

Loveable farmer explains why he and thousands of others have pledged to go carbon neutral

Matt Nuckols wants you to know a thing or two about dairy farm life.

This is Cinderella. But she's not a princess — she's a cow.

Matt and his cows are on a mission to show people, firsthand, what it's like to live and work on a dairy farm.

Matt also attends events so he can show people what a living, breathing farmer is like.

Matt also lets the people he meets know his strong opinions on the way he runs his farm with respect to how milk is made, how it's shipped, and how the cows are treated.

As long as people are willing to listen, Matt's going to keep talking about what he does.

Running a dairy takes a whole lot of love — for the cows, the farm, and the Earth.

“I didn’t go out in life saying I’m gonna marry a dairy farmer,” Leann Krainick laughs, “but Cupid had other ideas.”

If Leann loves anything as much as her husband, it's their cows.

It's the Krainicks' love for their animals that drives them to run their dairy in the most environmentally friendly way possible.

That's not the only way they are working to be more sustainable. Another practice became so successful it formed a new offshoot of their business.

Leann and Mike's soil business is just the most recent green initiative in the long history of their dairy.

Confused by what date labels on food products mean? Us, too. So we looked into it.

Have you ever wondered what on Earth all of those "best before," "sell by," and "expiration" dates sprinkled on products actually mean?

Take "best before" labels, for example.

1. Milk cartons usually display some iteration of a “sell by,” “best before,” or “freshest by” date, but the milk can last a lot longer than that if unopened.

2. When it comes to eggs, "sell by" or "best before" doesn’t mean "throw me out."

3. Canned goods are the one true post-apocalyptic food.

Lack of clarity around food labels affects more than consumer food choices. It also has big implications for our landfills.

In an ideal world, choosing the safest, freshest food in the grocery store shouldn’t require a calendar or a cheat sheet.

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