ADSA’s 49th Discover Conference Digs into Dairy’s Environmental Future

Dairy and the Environment: Challenges and Opportunities brings nutritionists, geneticists, and agronomists together to work through what’s actually moving the needle on-farm this August.

For the nutritionists, geneticists, and agronomists who advise dairy operations, the questions keep coming: which feed strategies hold up under scrutiny, what forage practices deliver in a changing climate, and how to balance productivity against a growing list of environmental goals. The American Dairy Science Association’s 49th Discover Conference (DC49) is built to work through those questions side by side with the researchers studying them.

The American Dairy Science Association (ADSA) is a nonprofit professional organization representing dairy scientists, researchers, and industry professionals worldwide. Its Discover Conference series is built on a simple premise: take a single, timely issue and examine it from multiple, interdisciplinary perspectives over two and a half days, in a setting small enough for real conversation. This year’s conference, “Dairy and the Environment: Challenges and Opportunities,” runs August 31 through September 3, 2026, at Eaglewood Resort & Spa in Itasca, Illinois.

For practitioners who spend their days translating research into recommendations, DC49 offers something rare: direct access to the people generating the latest science, and the time to actually talk through how it applies in the field.

“The Discover Conference is designed to bring the right people into the same room,” said Joanne Knapp, PhD, PAS, ADSA Discover Conference Series Director. “Researchers and the practitioners who put their work into practice, talking through one focused topic together. For anyone trying to understand where dairy is headed, that exchange is where the real value is.”

Forage and agronomy run through the heart of the program. A full session walks through the current state and emerging trends in sustainable forage production across the Western, Midwestern and Northeastern, and Southeastern US, led by Nick Clark (University of California Agriculture & Natural Resources), Jerry Cherney (Cornell University), and Jose Dubeux (University of Florida). From there, the program turns to two pressures landing squarely on forage producers: groundwater policy approaches to water scarcity, with Ellen Bruno of the University of California, Berkeley, and field-based evidence of PFAS exposure in dairy systems, with Robert Hagevoort of New Mexico State.

Nutrition and feeding management get the same depth. Sessions cover diet reformulation, the science of dialing in protein feeding, forage quality’s effect on feed efficiency, and a frank look at methane-reducing feed additives. On the genetics side, Kristen Gaddis of the US Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding examines how breeding decisions balance productivity, efficiency, and environmental impact, alongside sessions on herd management and dairy’s role in sustainable beef.

The format is built for exactly this kind of exchange. Presentations run 30 minutes and are followed by open discussion, with a single theme explored from multiple angles. Past attendees consistently name this structure as the conference’s central value, citing the chance to hear from experts across nutrition, genetics, physiology, and agronomy in a setting small enough to actually discuss and ask questions. Many leave with perspectives from fields they had never considered. A Sustainability Showcase and Social brings a high-energy, speed-networking event where companies highlight sustainability innovations, meet new collaborators, and share impact through interactive displays.

 Registration is open now, with early bird savings available until July 31, 2026—including significant member discounts for members of ADSA—and travel scholarships offered to 10 graduate students. Sponsorship opportunities are also available for companies looking to connect and get involved with this interdisciplinary event.

Discover Conferences offer an environment and format that encourage exciting interactions among scientists focusing on topics of importance to the science of food animal agriculture. The program is designed to provide a format and venue to encourage in-depth discussion of cutting-edge science. There will be no proceedings, and citations or references from the conference will not be allowed so that free and open exchange of new or controversial issues may be achieved. https://www.adsa.org/Meetings/Discover-Conference-Series

ADSA is an international organization of educators, scientists, and industry representatives who are committed to advancing the dairy industry and keenly aware of the vital role the dairy sciences play in fulfilling the economic, nutritive, and health requirements of the world’s population. It provides leadership in scientific and technical support to sustain and grow the global dairy industry through generation, dissemination, and exchange of information and services. Together, ADSA members have discovered new methods and technologies that have revolutionized the dairy industry. www.adsa.org