Kerry Dairy Ireland’s sustainable dairy training programme has been transformed into a fully accredited Level 7 certificate.

The move follows a high level of interest in the programme, which was previously run as a pilot in 2023.

The programme is open to Kerry Agribusiness milk suppliers and run in partnership with IRD Duhallow Skillnet, one of 70 Skillnet business networks.

It is delivered by University College Cork (UCC) and co-funded by the Government of Ireland and the European Union.

Evolve

The training programme is a key part of Evolve, Kerry’s sustainable dairy initiative, which was first established in 2022.

The overall aim of Evolve is to reward milk suppliers for the sustainable farming practices they are currently implementing and to incentivise them to undertake additional sustainability measures.

The training programme provides them with the knowledge and advice needed to implement changes on their farm.

The training programme ran online over nine weeks in 2023, with one interactive in-person training day at UCC and demand was such that a second programme was required to facilitate interested participants.

Feedback from the course led to the programme being further developed into a 12-week fully accredited Level 7 certificate this year.

Environmental stewardship

General manager Kerry Agribusiness James O’Connell said: “The high level of interest from our milk suppliers in this initiative underscores the interest farmers have in environmental stewardship and in furthering their knowledge across a broad range of sustainability related areas.

“Partnering with IRD Duhallow Skillnet and University College Cork has been instrumental in providing our farmers with the knowledge and skills needed to drive sustainable dairy farming forward.”

Developer officer at IRD Duhallow Monica Gilmore said this newly accredited course brings a new opportunity for farmers to upskill, gain practical knowledge and to bring more sustainable practices into their business.