Twin Birch Dairy in Skaneateles, N.Y., and the Turkey Hill Clean Water Partnership were recognized as winners of the U.S. Dairy Sustainability Awards by dairy checkoff’s Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy in a virtual program on Monday.

Twin Birch Dairy, owned by Dirk Young, Todd Evans and Jeremy Brown, were winners in the Outstanding Dairy Farm Sustainability category for their environmental stewardship in the New York Finger Lakes Region. The award recognizes leaders in socially responsible, economically viable and environmentally sound dairy production, and exemplify a longstanding commitment to continuous improvement.

The Outstanding Supply Chain Collaboration award went to the Turkey Hill Clean Water Partnership comprised of Turkey Hill Dairy in Lancaster County, Pa., Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative and the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay. The category brought together local farmers and the private and public sectors to help dairy farmers develop and adopt conservation plans to better manage soil and water on-farm, to help protect the Chesapeake Bay.

Lolly Lesher of Way-Har Farm and Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program board member of Bernville, Pa., welcomed WFMZ-TV onto the farm and into their farm market to celebrate National Farmers Day on Monday. Lolly, husband William and daughter Olivia participated in five live interviews, totaling nearly 15 minutes, throughout the morning to help consumers make the connection between the cows that produce the milk to how it’s processed for consumers to enjoy. 

In addition, Andy Mason of Fawnwood Farm from Chestertown, Md., was interviewed by Delmarva’s WBOC-TV. 

Pennsylvania dairy farmer, American Dairy Association North East board member and Dairy Management Inc., chair Marilyn Hershey of Cochranville, recently joined DMI leaders on an episode of RFD-TV’s “Rural America Live” program. Together they discussed how dairy checkoff pivoted nationally during the COVID-19 crisis and continued its mission of growing sales and building trust for dairy farmers.