The US Department of Agriculture is terminating the funding of ESG projects through the dairy checkoff.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced the cessation of dairy checkoff funding for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) projects, including net-zero and greenhouse gas initiatives implemented by the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. According to the Secretary, this measure is intended to return research and promotion programs to their original mission of expanding markets and supporting producers.

The Agricultural Marketing Service has been directed to evaluate the activities of other programs to ensure compliance with departmental policy. The agency highlighted several initiatives supporting ESG activities, including the FARM Environmental Stewardship program, participation in Scope 3 greenhouse gas accounting, the U.S. Dairy Net Zero Initiative, and the Pathways to Dairy Net Zero project, which the USDA joined at the COP26 conference in 2021 under the Biden administration and Secretary Tom Vilsack.

Dairy Management Inc., which administers the dairy checkoff, confirmed its intention to comply with the new directive. Representatives of the organization stated that they will review projects and take the necessary steps to modify or terminate relevant contracts and activities.