How can dairy farming contribute to sustainable food production?

If food production is to be sustainable, it must be safe, nutritious, economically viable, environmentally acceptable and capable of meeting volume demands. With the global population set to increase by approximately 2.4 billion people by the year 2050, it is predicted that demand for food production will rise by about 70 %. Research and innovation in technology and farming methods are enabling dairy production to increase in a sustainable manner.

Dairy is considered a nutritious, versatile and affordable food and is therefore well placed to play a role in meeting the global need for sustainable food production. The availability of natural resources should be considered as key when assessing the sustainability of production systems. Ireland has a grazed grass system of milk production with virtually all of the water used supplied naturally from the environment, making Ireland one of the best places in the world for sustainable milk production.