California’s Water-Smart Dairy Farmers Double Down on Resiliency

Water scarcity is one of the greatest challenges facing California. State leaders and stakeholders are taking important actions to improve water resilience. Dairy farmers are also doing their part to understand how climate change and the path toward groundwater sustainability will impact their farms and communities, and what opportunities exist to improve smart water use.

Dairy Cares and the California Cattle Council commissioned an economic assessment of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) on the San Joaquin Valley dairy and cattle industries. The report—performed by ERA Economics and released on February 3—analyzed local-level data and documented a total anticipated economic loss of $2.2 billion to the state’s dairy and beef sectors, with 388,000 acres fallow, and 7,530 jobs lost by 2040. Recognizing how these changes are likely to occur—primarily through higher feed costs—dairy farms and allied businesses are aiming to alleviate the expected impacts.

One key finding in the economic report is that dairy feed crops are economically significant per unit of water used. When silage and hay production are recognized as inputs to milk and dairy foods, these crops are equivalent in value to commonly cited “high value” crops such as nuts and vegetables. Growing some of their own nutritious animal feed is an effective strategy for family dairy farms that aim to ensure economic sustainability. Furthermore, dairy feed crops play an important role in the San Joaquin Valley economy, in addition to their contribution to ecosystems, and ultimately in supporting the health and nutrition of people. Part of the value to society is that milk and dairy products are one of the most cost-effective sources of under-consumed nutrients—including potassium, calcium, and vitamin D. Therefore, as competition for water increases and acres are fallowed, dairy forages remain an important crop in California.

The report recognized that SGMA will impact San Joaquin Valley farms disproportionately, depending on local access to and availability of surface water. Furthermore, last week, the Department of Water Resources determined that the Groundwater Sustainability Plans for six of the twelve local basins will need to do more to assure state agencies that their efforts are on track to achieve groundwater sustainability. This represents another bump in the road as farmers and other stakeholders continue working diligently to make difficult decisions with the goal of long-term water sustainability and resilience.

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