CDFA Office of Agricultural Resilience and Sustainability

Have you ever thought about what it takes to get milk, butter, and other dairy products from the farm to your table?

For the family behind Vander Woude Dairy in Merced County, dairy farming is more than a job—it's a way of life. It's a commitment to family, stewardship, and producing food 365 days a year.

With support from California's Dairy Digester Research and Development Program (DDRDP), Vander Woude Dairy partnered on an innovative project that captures methane and converts it into renewable natural gas, helping reduce emissions while creating renewable energy and recycling nutrients back to their fields.

But this story isn't just about technology—it's about the people behind it. The values of hard work, responsibility, and leaving things better than you found them continue to guide the Vander Woude family as they help feed California and beyond.

🎥 Watch the video to hear their story and learn how innovation and stewardship go hand in hand on today's dairy farms.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMFI3jBM6pQ&t=8s

Catching Up with Vander Woude Dairy – OARS News Catching Up with Vander Woude Dairy June 1, 2026June 1, 2026Posted in Producer Success StoryTagged Methane Reduction Have you ever stopped to think about how your milk or butter actually gets to your table?  We recently caught up with the family behind Vander Woude Dairy in Merced, and the conver...

Funding Opportunity for California Dairy Producers 🚨

Applications are now OPEN for the Dairy Plus Program (DPP), supporting innovative manure management projects that reduce methane emissions, improve water quality, and address nitrogen and salt surpluses on California dairies.

Administered by CDFA’s Office of Agricultural Resilience and Sustainability (OARS) in partnership with the California Dairy Research Foundation, DPP has approximately $34 million available through USDA’s Advancing Markets for Producers initiative.

Since 2023, Dairy Plus has funded 34 projects across the state — helping accelerate practical, on-farm solutions that support climate goals, groundwater protection, and long-term dairy sustainability.

Eligible projects include:
✔️ Vermifiltration
✔️ Advanced solid-liquid separation
✔️ Emerging manure management technologies
✔️ Practices that deliver multiple environmental benefits

California dairy producers continue to lead with innovation, and DPP helps support the next generation of sustainable dairy solutions.

📅 Applications due: September 14, 2026 at 5 PM PT
🔗 Learn more and apply: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/oars/dairyplus/

Wild bees provide billions of dollars in free pollination services each year, helping improve both the quality and quantity of crop yields. Yet despite their importance, much remains unknown about the world’s ~20,000 bee species — especially ground-nesting bees, which make up nearly 70% of wild bee species.

That’s where Project GNBee comes in. Launched in 2023, this collaborative effort brings together researchers, institutions, and community scientists to better understand and protect ground-nesting bees through a national monitoring program.

Project GNBee is working to:
🔎 Discover and document nesting sites
🌱 Protect bee habitats and assess risks
🚜 Develop management strategies that support agriculture and pollinator health

By advancing our understanding of native bee nesting behavior, Project GNBee is helping build healthier ecosystems, stronger pollinator biodiversity, and a more resilient agricultural future.

Learn more: https://blogs.cdfa.ca.gov/oars-blog/index.php/2026/05/05/community-science-ground-nesting-bees-project/

We are hosting a live webinar spotlighting the Pollinator Habitat Program, featuring voices from both grant recipients and farmers making it happen on the ground.

Friday, June 26
3–4 PM (PT)

You’ll hear:
✨ A quick program overview
✨ Insights from block grant partners
✨ Real experiences from participating farmers
✨ Live Q&A

🎤 Featuring:
• Colusa County RCD – Elizabeth Harper
• Planet Bee – Shilpa Thanawala
• Pollinator Partnership – Emily Schmidt

Held during Pollinator Week (June 22–28)—a time to celebrate and support the pollinators that keep our ecosystems and agriculture thriving.

🔗 No registration required
Join here: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84568017553
🔑 Password: php2026!

Now Open: 2026–2027 BIFS Request for Proposals!

The latest RFP highlights five priority funding areas designed to support growers and advance sustainable pest management across California:

-Areawide management
- Monitoring that informs pest management
- Post-harvest disease control
- Neonicotinoid alternatives in tomato
- Paraquat alternatives

BIFS projects do not need to address a priority topic to apply.

This funding cycle offers $2 million in total funding, with up to $1 million per project. Funding comes from OPCA’s allocation of the pesticide mill assessment.

📅 Concept proposals are due by 5 PM PST on June 30, 2026.

Learn more: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/oars/opca/bifs.html

June is National Dairy Month! 🥛

California’s dairy producers continue to show that environmental progress and agricultural productivity can go hand in hand.

For generations, dairy families across the state have helped position California as a global leader not only in milk production, but also in methane reduction and climate-smart innovation. That progress didn’t happen through mandates alone — it happened because producers made real investments in the future of their operations, communities, and the next generation.

From digesters that convert methane into renewable transportation energy, to innovative manure management and emerging technologies, dairy producers are leading the way in sustainable agriculture.

Projects supported through programs like DDRDP, Dairy Plus, and AMMP highlight how on-farm innovation can support clean energy, improve air and water quality, strengthen resilience, and keep family dairies thriving for years to come.

This month, we thank California’s dairy community for its leadership, stewardship, and continued commitment to innovation.

In honor of Learn About Compost Day, we’re highlighting a Northern California dairy that received support from our Healthy Soils Program (HSP) for on‑farm composting and the Alternative Manure Management Program (AMMP) to install a separator.

By separating, creating, and spreading their own compost, the dairy has been able to improve soil health while reusing byproducts from their operation. Using a mix of corral manure, separated dairy solids, rice straw, and almond shells, the farmers have been producing and applying compost for about four years.

They’ve already seen meaningful benefits, including:
• Reduced use of chemical fertilizers
• Increased beneficial organisms and biodiversity
• Healthier, more aerated soils

As the producer noted, “Building soil health doesn’t happen overnight,” but CDFA programs have supported their journey toward a more sustainable operation.

Biodiversity depends on pollinators — and monarch butterflies are an important part of California’s ecosystems. 🦋🌼

On the International Day for Biological Diversity, we’re highlighting the release of a new report from the California Multi-Agency Monarch and Pollinator Collaborative outlining priority actions to support western monarch recovery and pollinator conservation.

As a member of the Collaborative, CDFA’s Office of Agricultural Resilience continues this work through programs like the Pollinator Habitat Program, helping expand habitat for monarchs and other pollinators on working lands across California.

Protecting biodiversity starts with protecting the species that help our ecosystems and food systems thrive.

Today is 🐝🌼

California is truly buzzing with biodiversity! Through our Pollinator Habitat Program, we’re helping create habitats for pollinators across the state.

Here’s the impact so far:
1,622+ acres of cover crops planted
273+ acres of conservation cover established
194,000+ feet of hedgerows installed (single and double rows combined)
2,965 trees and shrubs planted
20+ acres of wildlife habitat supported
527 windbreak plants established

Because when pollinators thrive, California agriculture does too — and that’s something to bee proud of. 💛

Women have always been at the heart of agriculture.

For generations, they’ve worked the fields, managed farms, and sustained households. All playing a critical role in feeding communities across California and beyond.

This Mother’s Day, we honor the women who have always been there and continue to lead the way forward.

And in this International Year of the Woman Farmer, we celebrate their leadership, resilience, and enduring impact more than ever.