is now a part of environmental stewardship schemes.
Driving progress on the environmental ambitions and commitments made by the UK dairy sector
Introduction
Since 2008, the Dairy Roadmap has been one of the world’s most successful cross-industry dairy sustainability initiatives.
Led by Dairy UK, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) and the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), with the support of dairy farmers, milk processors and wider industry, the Roadmap aims to:
- Improve the environmental footprint of the entire dairy supply chain.
- Strive for environmental best practice, innovation, and compliance.
- Maximise the social and economic benefits for the UK dairy sector from these improvements.
- Support both the global goal to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C, and the UK Government’s commitment to net zero.
The Roadmap fosters continuous improvement across the entire industry in areas including on-farm emissions, energy efficiency, water usage and waste management. We’re working hard to better protect our planet but also to drive social and economic prosperity throughout the UK dairy sector.
Targets
The Dairy Roadmap sets specific and evidence-based targets, which tackle specific elements of dairy production and processing. Our aims are:
- WATER – No serious pollution incidents, compliance with Farming Rules for Water, sustainable water usage and best treatment/use of wastewater including reuse where possible.
- CLIMATE CHANGE AND ENERGY – Limit global warming to 1.5oC. Zero contribution from the dairy sector towards global warming by 2050.
- WASTE & RECYCLING – All non-natural waste to be reused or recycled, with zero waste to landfill.
- SOILS – Farmers know and actively manage their soils, resulting in increased soil organic matter content, good NPK balance and living roots and ground cover whenever possible.
- BIODIVERSITY – Improved biodiversity on dairy farms.
- AIR QUALITY – Minimise emissions, dust and secondary particulates resulting from agricultural & processing activities to reduce wider environmental and human health impacts.
- PACKAGING – eliminate unnecessary single use plastic, maximise recycled content, and improve recyclability, while minimising carbon impact.
Good Practice
As part of the Dairy Roadmap, our Steering Group and experts from across industry have created a range of good practice guidance documents for dairy farmers, processors and others across the supply chain.
These guides set out the most up-to-date sustainability practices and are regularly updated to ensure guidance is based on the latest scientific information and innovations.
Our good practice guidance is available to all across the industry, and free to download.
Progress so far
The Roadmap has been paving the way in dairy sustainability and is a blueprint for other sectors around the world in terms of pre-competitive, cross-industry initiatives to address sustainability challenges.
In fact, some of the dairy industry’s most impressive achievements to date include:
For Farmers:
65
OF DAIRY MANAGED FARMLAND
40
OF ENERGY USED ON DAIRY FARMS
comes from renewable sources.
MORE THAN
80
OF DAIRY FARMERS
calculated their carbon footprint and are working to reduce their emissions.
REDUCED BY MORE THAN
30
DAYS
Average age at first calving since 2018.
For Dairy Processors:
20
INCREASE
in primary energy efficiency
(kWh/tonne)
17
DECREASE
in energy-related carbon per kg milk
(kg CO2/kg)
20
INCREASE
in water efficiency
(m3/tonne)
11
INCREASE
in raw effluent efficiency
(m3/tonne)
1.3
OF INPUTS
are lost as food waste
Originally focused on liquid milk, the Roadmap expanded in 2011 to encompass all dairy products. Along this journey, we’ve achieved remarkable successes and reached significant milestones—including notable reductions in water and energy usage, alongside the implementation of carbon management plans at all major processing companies.
Join us in shaping a sustainable future for the dairy industry—one where innovation, collaboration, and environmental stewardship pave the way for a brighter tomorrow. Together, we’re not just setting the standard; we’re raising it, one milestone at a time.
