A Heartland Impact report in partnership with Consumers Defense.
Pathways to Dairy Net Zero (P2DNZ) is being sold to Americans as a “voluntary, science-based” effort to make dairy more sustainable and deserves much closer examination. However, that could not be further from the truth.
Beneath the polished language of the Pathways to Dairy Net Zero initiative lies a far more consequential scheme: a quiet but powerful restructuring of how American agriculture operates.
At first glance, P2DNZ sounds harmless, even admirable. Who wouldn’t support cleaner practices or environmental stewardship? But this initiative doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It follows a now-familiar pattern seen across global ESG and net-zero movements.
What begins as “guidance” quickly becomes obligation. In the end, American small farmers are left decimated.
In November of 2021, Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture under Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, affirmed the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) involvement in Pathways to Dairy Net Zero at the 26thUnited Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26). Since this affirmation, American dairy farmers have experienced real interruptions in how they conduct their business and sell their milk because of this agreement made by out-of-touch bureaucrats without their representation.
This report is intended to be a comprehensive look at the real-world effects of multinational non-governmental ESG agreements like Pathways to Dairy Net Zero. From the large-scale analysis of how ESG mandating functions, to the actual impact American Dairy emissions have on global emission standards, to food security and disruptions in our American food supply chain, and foreign adversaries and competitors; there is much to consider when it comes to truly comprehending how disastrous this policy is.
Lastly, there are legislative and legal solutions that can be explored to protect small- and mid-sized American farmers from burdensome and calamitous ESG programs like P2DNZ. At the end of the day, this isn’t just about emissions targets or reporting standards. It’s about who decides the future of American food security and whether the people directly engaged in that effort will still have a say.