As the dairy industry continues to grow and change, it’s met with a unique set of challenges— from job roles to the expectations surrounding animal care and efficiency. Consumers are increasingly eager to understand how their food is produced and to verify ethical practices are followed.
Rising to meet these needs is DairyKind, an innovative platform transforming training processes within the dairy industry.
New System For Animal Welfare
Designed by a dedicated team of seven veterinarians, DairyKind offers a robust system for training and monitoring animal well-being practices on farms. This third-party platform ensures accountability and transparency by providing verification to the consumer, effectively bridging the gap between farm practices and public concern.
“The DairyKind seal gives confidence to consumers that the dairy products they purchase come from farms prioritizing animal well-being,” says Michelle Schack, DVM and co-creator of DairyKind.
Schack, along with her team, created DairyKind in response to the increasing audits and evaluations dairies face regarding welfare, safety and environmental concerns.
The Training Gap
DairyKind was conceptualized in 2019 and launched in 2020, starting in Arizona and quickly expanding to 12 states. It’s delivered more than 72,000 trainings across the U.S., offering a comprehensive online platform which provides accessible training in employees’ native languages. This ensures clear communication from day one and establishes foundational knowledge that supports ongoing in-person training by veterinarians and farm managers.
“It’s so important that every farm employee has very clear expectations from day one,” she says. “Group training is great, but it’s not enough. There was a gap there that needed to be filled. We saw that need, and we created DairyKind, as an online platform to deliver training that is accessible at any time in the native language of the person, and is a way that the farmers can deliver training to their employees in a very practical way.”
The platform has been particularly beneficial for ensuring compliance during various audits, whether that be the National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) audit or others.
As highlighted by Schack, training deficiencies consistently rank among the top program corrective actions within industry evaluations. DairyKind aids farms by providing structured, reliable training documentation, simplifying the audit process and helping maintain high welfare standards.
The Benefits of Standardizing Training
Beyond compliance, DairyKind offers farms a practical training solution, informed by veterinarians who understand the unique operational challenges faced by dairy farmers. Courses are brief, typically ranging from five to fifteen minutes — making them easily integrable into daily routines without overwhelming staff. They even have quizzes to ensure employees comprehend the training lessons. The system also empowers farm owners, allowing them to oversee operations across multiple sites and ensure consistent communication of values and expectations.
For larger operations, DairyKind offers a hierarchy system that enables owners to efficiently manage training across different locations. Whether it’s a small family-run farm or a vast multi-location enterprise, the ability to track training and ensure every employee understands the ‘why’ behind their duties helps maintain consistency in animal care.
“We’ve really focused on seeing that people understand the ‘why’,” she says. “Understanding the ‘why’ can help them be better equipped to make better decisions in their everyday job and do the best job that they can and feel more empowered.”
When a farm has an audit — whether they have two employees or hundreds — it requires documentation of some type of training. DairyKind offers just that.
Consumer Connections
By upholding rigorous standards and maintaining transparency, DairKind allows consumers greater insight into the sources of their dairy products. Some clients have gone as far as to incorporate the DairyKind logo on their products, underscoring their commitment to animal welfare and engaging consumers with their values.
DairyKind is more than just a platform; it’s a catalyst for change, offering the dairy industry a path forward in an increasingly conscientious market. Through tools like this, the future of dairy will not only involve more efficient practices, but also greater alignment with the values of transparency, accountability and ethical treatment of animals — values that consumers passionately support.
Your Next Read:
Enhancing Biosecurity on Calf Ranches: Balancing Animal and Human Health
