about project support

To promote and encourage continuous improvement in sustainability of the U.S. beef value chain, the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef is dedicated to recognizing and supporting, as appropriate, sustainability projects whose aims are consistent with our mission and vision.  Projects that meet these criteria may apply for a letter of support from the USRSB. 

The projects listed below have been evaluated by the USRSB and have been determined to:

  • Align with the USRSB mission, vision, indicators, metrics and goals
  • Contain components that allow for continuous improvement
  • Address gaps that exist in current knowledge 
  • Contribute to the U.S. beef value chain being the trusted global leader in environmentally sound, economically viable and socially responsible beef production

 APPLY FOR PROJECT SUPPORT  

2024 supported projects

CREDIBLE ENVIRONMENTAL ACCOUNTING FOR U.S. FEED RATION INNOVATION

IFEEDER 

The objective of this project is to provide practical methods, tools, integrated models and database support to the U.S. feed and animal production supply chain empowering them to credibly reduce their scope 3 environmental footprints linked to GHG emissions, water, energy and land use.

EVALUATION OF REDUCED ENTERIC METHANE EMISSIONS IN BEEF CATTLE USING A NOVEL VACCINE AT RESEARCH FARMS IN ALBERTA

ArkeaBio 

ArkeaBio proposes a study at research farms in Alberta to evaluate its vaccine’s ability to reduce methane emissions in beef cattle. ArkeaBio is collaborating with Dr. Basarab's team at the University of Alberta to conduct a trial in Alberta assessing efficacy of ArkeaBio’s vaccine in both cow-calf and feedlot systems.

HOW DO BEEF PRODUCERS BENEFIT FROM METHANE REDUCTION MARKETS?

Colorado State University AgNext, Kansas State University, Texas A&M Agrilife Research, Five Rivers LLC, USDA Agricultural Research Service

This multi-stakeholder and multi-disciplinary team's goal in this proposal is to collect current GHG emissions, assess how interventions affect emissions, and develop coupled and decoupled pilot markets for GHG reduction across sectors and regions in the U.S.

ADDRESSING NATURAL RESOURCE CONCERNS AND INCREASING MANAGED GRAZING IN THE TALLGRASS PRAIRIE THROUGH EDUCATION, TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND PEER GRAZING NETWORKS

Kansas State University, Noble Research Institute, Hy-Plains Feedyard and partners 

A large generational turnover of grazing lands in the tallgrass prairie region of Kansas and Oklahoma is occurring resulting in new/beginning farmers. We will develop and deliver grazing management workshops to new and beginning farmers and ranchers where they will develop a written grazing management plan, provide peer mentoring on farm to help workshop participants implement their plan, and monitor improvements in soil health, forage productivity and cattle productivity following implementation of climate smart grazing practices to evaluate conservation benefits of managed grazing.

2023 Supported projects

ENHANCING RURAL PRACTICE SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH DEVELOPMENT AND SPANISH TRANSLATION OF CATTLE PRODUCTION TRAINING RESOURCES

Beef Quality Assurance (BQA), managed by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association

The purpose of this project is to translate all BQA English resources to Spanish. Training tools will enhance cattle care and communication with workers. Economic sustainability comes from instilling confidence in employees and worker safety. Social sustainability is created when tools provide job training for employees.

IDENTIFYING RESEARCH PRIORITIES TO ENSURE THE SAFE AND ETHICAL INTRODUCTION OF EMERGING PRODUCTITY ENHANCING TECHNOLOGIES THAT REDUCE THE CARBON INTENSITY OF BEEF AND DAIRY

The Breakthrough Institute  

The goal of this project is to overcome the adoption and acceptance barriers to emerging productivity-enhancing technologies like feed additives and gene edited animals that lower the carbon intensity of beef and dairy. Objectives include: (1) convene diverse stakeholders engaged in animal welfare, health and productivity; (2) identify perceptions of the safety, efficacy and cost of emerging climate-mitigating PET; (3) list unsettled socio-economic questions; and (4) map a research strategy to answer unsettled socio-economic questions.

IMPROVING ANIMAL PRODUCTIVITY AND ENTERIC EMISSIONS THROUGH IDENTIFICATION AND MANIPULATION OF HOST-MICROBIOME-ENVIRONMENT INTERACTIONS

University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture (UTIA) 

This project is aimed at developing solutions that enable producers to decrease enteric GHG emissions while maintaining or improving production efficiency in forage-based cow-calf production systems through an enhanced understanding of how an animal, its microbiome and the environment interact.

KANSAS HIGH PLAINS AQUIFER REGIONAL CONSERVATION PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM (RCPP)

Kansas Department of Agriculture Division of Conservation 

The Kansas High Plains Aquifer RCPP seeks to increase technical assistance, financial assistance and outreach and education activities to implement voluntary incentive-based conservation practices that help reduce water use and improve groundwater level declines and streamflow depletions.

RESILIENCE PLANNING TO SUSTAIN IRRIGATED CATTLE AND DAIRY FEED AND FORAGE SYSTEMS

Kansas State University and the Kansas Livestock Association 

This project seeks to align stakeholders across the beef and dairy supply chain around a set of practices and commitments to reduce water use from the Ogallala-High Plains aquifer and promote aquifer viability into the future.

2022 supported projects

EMPOWERING PRODUCERS TO TAKE ACTION WITH GRAZING MANAGEMENT THROUGH ACCESS TO TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO SUPPORT GRAZING PLANNING AND CONSERVATION PRACTICE IMPLEMENTATION 

National Cattlemen's Beef Association  

The goal of this project is to facilitate grazing management workshops, encourage written grazing management plans, disseminate grazing resources and support attendance at grazing management educational events.

INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES TO REDUCE BEEF INDUSTY GHG EMISSIONS

Colorado State University AgNext, U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service  

The goal of this project is to reduce GHG emissions through climate-smart and regenerative practices, demonstrate the use of innovative and existing technologies for GHG reductions, and develop and test a pilot market-based program that benefits underserved producers. This proposal serves the dual interests of mitigating the livestock industry’s impact on climate change while providing a market incentive for emission reductions that can diversify producers’ income. The geographic scope for this project spans the Western Plains region, a vital region for the U.S. beef production.

MULTI-STAKEHOLDER DIALOGUES TO SUPPORT CRITICAL AGRICULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURE, CLIMATE RESILIENCE, AND RURAL COMMUNITY VITALITY IN THE HIGH PLAINS

Kansas State University College of Agriculture and Kansas Center for Agricultural Resources and the Environment (KCARE) 

This project aims to coordinate multiple in-person dialogues, using western Kansas as a test bed region, with stakeholders that represent the agricultural supply chain from feed and forage growers to livestock and dairy producers and processors, and will adapt the Master Irrigator Program format as proof-of-concept to demonstrate how it can be replicated elsewhere.

INTEGRATING SYSTEMS MODELS WITH HUMAN BEHAVIOR TO DEVELOP REGENERATIVE HUMAN-BEEF-GRASSLAND SYSTEMS

Kansas State University and Texas A&M University 

This project plans to integrate new knowledge of producer decision making processes with biophysical simulation models of rangeland ecosystems to develop optimum ranch, producer-specific management systems across diverse production environments.

REDUCING METHANE EMISSIONS BY IDENTIFYING HOST-MICROBIOME-ENVIRONMENT INTERACTIONS THAT DRIVE GAS PRODUCTION IN THE RUMEN 

University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture 

in this project, we are proposing to use genomic, microbiome and high-throughput phenotyping to understand the complex set of interactions that drive methane production in grazing beef cows.

MICROALGAE: A NOVEL METHANE MITIGATION STRATEGY FOR THE BEEF SUPPLY CHAIN 

Colorado State University 

This project will evaluate a novel red algae strain on its ability to reduce enteric methane in both grazing and finishing beef systems. This technology will be evaluated from basic scientific experiments to larger-scale projects that include animal performance and health and nitrogen balance to avoid unintended consequences associated with the implementation of a new mitigation technique. We propose a multi-phase approach to develop practical and scalable solutions to mitigate enteric methane emissions.

CREATING BEEF FEEDER CALVES USING CLIMATE-SMART GENETICS

ABS Global Climate-Smart proposal 

This pilot will demonstrate the ability of ABS Global’s NuEra Genetics combined with innovative monitoring and measurement of animal performance to further reduce the climate impact of the beef supply chain. Another goal is incentivizing the use of Climate Smart genetics and developing reliable markets for Climate Smart feeder cattle throughout the beef supply chain.

THE GRASS IS GREENER ON THE OTHER SIDE: DEVELOPING CLIMATE-SMART BEEF AND BISON COMMODITIES 

South Dakota State University Climate-Smart proposal 

This project will create market opportunities for beef and bison producers who utilize climate-smart agriculture grazing and land management practices. The project will guide and educate producers on climate-smart practices most suited for their operations, manage large-scale climate-smart data that will be used by producers to improve decision-making and directly impact market demand for climate-smart beef/bison commodity markets.

CLIMATE-SMART BEEF, DAIRY AND FORESTRY FROM THE SOUTHEAST

University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Climate-Smart proposal 

The UF IFAS project proposes to engage and incentivize Florida and Georgia ranchers, large and small landholders in climate smart approaches to beef cattle and dairy production including strategies like afforestation and silvopasture systems as well as land changes from cropland to pasture, animal dietary changes, manure storage management and other strategies known to reduce livestock GHG footprint.

STEWARDSHIP HUB SUPPORTING REGENERATIVE GRAZING LANDS 

The Nature Conservancy Climate-Smart proposal 

The purpose of this project is to encourage, support and provide ranchers with the tools, technical resources and financial incentives to enroll in supply chain or carbon market programs.

CONNECTED AG  

Trust In Food Climate-Smart proposal 

This project will expand climate-smart markets for many agricultural commodities and provide direct payments, technical assistance, and data management strategies to producers of row crops, beef, dairy, pork and other commodities to adopt climate-smart practices and strategies.

CLIMATE-SMART GRASSLANDS - THE ROOT OF AGRICULTURAL CARBON MARKETS 

University of Tennessee Climate-Smart proposal 

UTIA will develop a partnership to empower grassland farmers to enter the emerging carbon economy while enhancing operational resiliency and optimizing profitability, soil health and biodiversity. To achieve these goals, we will implement a large-scale pilot project focused on a ten-state region that represents the core of grasslands agriculture across the eastern U.S.

CLIMATE-SMART AG PILOT PROJECTS TO RANCHING SUSTAINABILITY AND VIABILITY PLANNING (RSVP) EXPANSION, FEED CROPS PILOT, NEW MARKETS DEVELOPMENT AND IDENTITYING AGRICULTURE'S NORTH STAR FOR CLIMATE  

World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Climate-Smart proposal 

Through expansion of World Wildlife Fund project efforts dating back to 2011, this proposal will directly support USRSB environmental sustainability goals through promotion of the use of grazing management plans on operations across the Northern Great Plains. This project will enable data collection related to baseline measurements of soil carbon, water infiltration, plant abundance and diversity along with biodiversity. In addition, this project will enable better understanding of feed crop production and management practices that help to improve soil organic carbon and minimize nitrate leaching and soil loss from erosion.

CREATING A MARKETPLACE FOR CLIMATE-SMART BEEF 

Texas Tech University Climate-Smart proposal 

With a long-term goal to develop a climate-smart marketplace for beef producers, Texas Tech University’s project will work to develop a greenhouse gas market framework for climate-smart beef that will demonstrate the viability of a pilot marketplace where producers are able to sell verifiable greenhouse gas reductions on a national market. The proposal also aims to verify, monitor and track greenhouse gas emissions from cattle and implement on-farm, scalable mitigation practices throughout the beef supply chain.

YOU-360 

Synergy for Ecological Solutions and the Carbon Asset Network (CAN) 

Initiative YOU-360 is a partnership between Synergy for Ecological Solutions, a nonprofit with a foundation, and the Carbon Asset Network (CAN). Foundation donations go to fund landowner practice implementation that promote soil health and increase soil carbon, as well as go to fund technical assistance and soil tests. 

 supported projects from prior years    see previous  supported projects