The Farm Zero C project aims to set up a climate-neutral profit-making dairy farm – is it possible? - video Dailymotion

euronews (in English)

The Farm Zero C project in Ireland aims to slash greenhouse gas emissions and still make a profit. Can it be done?

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00:00 Climate Now in collaboration with Copernicus.

00:04 Hello and welcome to Climate Now and this month we're here in Ireland on this very special dairy farm

00:17 which is aiming to become 100% climate neutral while also turning a profit.

00:23 It's a big challenge, so can it be done?

00:26 We've already achieved a 27% reduction in our carbon footprint.

00:30 We're hoping to get this to about 50% to 65% in phase 2 and be climate neutral by 2030.

00:35 Before that, let's take a look at the very latest data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service.

00:43 Globally we've now seen extraordinary temperatures for 11 months in a row.

00:48 We had the warmest April on record, 0.7 degrees Celsius above the 1991 to 2020 average.

00:55 Europe saw a sharp contrast in temperature anomalies across the continent.

00:59 It was much warmer than average in the east in particular.

01:02 At the same time, Scandinavia was a few degrees colder than average last month.

01:07 April continued to see above average precipitation in many northerly parts of Europe, shaded in blue on this map.

01:14 The Easter holidays were a washout for many Europeans.

01:18 This map of soil moisture anomaly for last month highlights how the land in northwestern Europe is wetter than average,

01:24 contrasting with drier soil from eastern Spain to Turkey.

01:28 Further afield, Dubai was flooded after a record-breaking deluge.

01:33 Some parts of the Emirates saw the equivalent of two years' worth of rain in 24 hours.

01:38 Now to our report on the challenge of creating a climate-neutral dairy farm.

01:49 This 100 hectare farm near Cork is aiming to be a pioneer in environmental sustainability.

01:55 The goal being to slash greenhouse gas emissions to zero and still make a profit.

02:00 The first step for Farm Zero Sea project manager Pádraig Walsh was to take stock of the situation.

02:06 We measured the carbon footprint of all the inputs and all the outputs of the farm.

02:11 We created a model based on this as well and then we were able to identify our biggest emitters.

02:17 The assessment showed that the farm's biggest emitters were also its biggest revenue generators, the dairy cows.

02:24 We could see that methane was a huge emitter for us.

02:27 Over 50% of our emissions come from methane from cows, from these girls here,

02:32 from them digesting their food and releasing methane into the atmosphere.

02:37 There's no easy way to reduce methane emissions when the cows are grazing,

02:41 although during the winter when the herd is indoors there are additives that do make a difference.

02:47 We're getting about 7% reduction in our methane emissions by feeding the cows during the housing period.

02:52 This chemical additive reduces methane emissions from store to store by about 75%.

02:57 Each time the cows come in to be milked, the farm sees a spike in electricity demand,

03:02 so they're testing how to fit wind and solar energy into a farming business.

03:09 Meanwhile in the fields, the emissions reduction solutions come from nature, not technology,

03:14 as scientist Mary-Kate Doherty explains.

03:17 So this is a multi-species field here, so that's three or more species of plants.

03:22 So here we have chicory, plantain, white clover and ryegrass.

03:26 So this is a big thing in reducing our carbon footprint.

03:30 The chicory and plantain help sequester carbon and boost water quality,

03:35 while the clover fixes nitrogen into the soil and avoids the need for carbon-intensive fertilisers.

03:41 Lots of the fields here last year that have high clover didn't get any chemical fertiliser

03:47 and still produce as much grass as the fields that did get chemical fertiliser.

03:51 10% of the farm is devoted to boosting biodiversity.

03:55 Creating wetlands isn't profitable today,

03:58 but the project aims to test so-called carbon farming, which would reward this type of landscape.

04:03 This kind of area is providing a lot of benefits for the wider environment

04:07 and we feel farmers should be paid for that.

04:09 To reach net zero by 2030, the business and academic partners need to find

04:15 a sustainable methane reduction solution for the cows.

04:18 They believe they can develop a climate-neutral business model for Irish dairy farmers

04:23 and bring consumers of cheese and milk on board too.

04:26 We believe that consumers will pay a premium for our lower carbon footprint products.

04:32 We all need to tackle the emissions challenge together

04:35 and if we want farmers to reduce their own emissions, they're going to need to be rewarded for that as well.

04:39 Well that's all we have time for, but you can read a lot more about how our planet is changing

04:46 on euronews.com/climatenow and I'll see you next time.

04:50 Euronews

04:54 Climate Now in collaboration with Copernicus

04:58 (gentle music)

The Farm Zero C project aims to set up a climate-neutral profit-making dairy farm – is it possible?

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