Tom Gates, Vailes Dairy Specialist for Ben & Jerry's, told the committee that Ben & Jerry's Caring Dairy program currently works with about 48 Vermont farms (51 including participating farms in northeastern New York) and has invested "over $40,000,000 on farms participating in Caring Dairy in the U.S." Gates said the program aims to strengthen farm livelihoods, improve animal care, expand regenerative practices and reduce on‑farm greenhouse gas emissions.

Gates described the program's four pillars: labor standards (Ben & Jerry's participates in the Milk with Dignity program), third‑party animal care audits (Global Animal Partnership certification), regenerative practices (cover crops, reduced tillage, crop rotation and increasing homegrown feed), and measurement and reduction of farm greenhouse gas footprints. He said about 80% of the milk volume represented in Caring Dairy lies within 30 miles of Ben & Jerry's St. Albans manufacturing plant.

Program metrics and pilots: Gates said Caring Dairy farms in the U.S. represent just over 20,000 lactating cows, roughly 25,000 acres of grass, 18,000 acres of primarily corn silage, and 16,000 acres of forest — almost 60,000 acres overall. He said recent data showed Caring Dairy farms reduced their on‑farm greenhouse gas footprint by about 13% relative to a 2015 baseline through 2022, and a Low Carbon Dairy pilot of seven Vermont farms achieved roughly a 16% reduction through 2022. Gates noted that enteric emissions and manure management are the largest sources of on‑farm emissions and described work on feed additives, manure separators, and digesters targeted to medium‑sized farms.

On labor and animal care, Gates said Ben & Jerry's was an early U.S. signatory to the Milk with Dignity program and that more than 200 farm workers on participating Vermont farms are covered by the program. He also described that over 55% of participating Vermont farms had achieved third‑party animal‑care certification and that about three‑quarters of annual corn acres in the program are planted with a cover crop, while 86% of participating acres used no‑ or minimum‑till practices.

Committee members asked technical questions about how Ben & Jerry's purchases milk components (butterfat and nonfat solids rather than whole farm milk), what happens to the water removed in separation, how feed additives work to reduce enteric emissions, and whether Ben & Jerry's production in the U.S. primarily occurs in Vermont plants. Gates answered that cream and condensed nonfat solids are purchased from balancing plants (often cooperative‑owned facilities) and that much of the separated water is repurposed at plants for non‑product uses.

Ending: Gates said the company continues to refine farm‑level interventions and hoped to incorporate successful Low Carbon Dairy pilot results into the broader Caring Dairy program in coming years. Committee members thanked Gates and asked staff to follow up on technical details and certification data for members who requested them.