What each figure on a dairy farm's results means, the unit it comes in, and how to read it.
Emissions and footprint
Metric | Unit | What it means | How to read it |
Carbon footprint | kg CO₂e / kg FPCM | Greenhouse gas emissions per kilogram of fat-and-protein-corrected milk. The farm's headline figure. | Lower is better. This is an intensity, not a total — a farm that produces more milk can lower its footprint while its total emissions rise. |
Total emissions (allocated) | t CO₂e / year | The farm's total greenhouse gas emissions for the year, counting only the share attributed to milk rather than meat. | Lower is better. This is the basis used for product carbon footprint reporting. |
Total emissions (unallocated) | t CO₂e / year | The farm's full emissions for the year, before any share is attributed to meat. | Always higher than the allocated figure. Which of the two your reporting needs is a methodology question, not a platform one. |
Allocation factor | % | The share of the farm's emissions attributed to milk once milk and meat are split. | Higher means more of the farm's emissions are counted against milk. |
Emissions by source | t CO₂e and % of total | The footprint split across five sources: Feed Production, Animal Digestion, Manure Management, Fertiliser and Other Sources. | The five shares add up to 100%. Use it to see which part of the farm system drives the total. |
Ammonia | kg | Ammonia (NH₃) released by the farm over the year. | Lower is better. This is a nitrogen loss, not a greenhouse gas, and it is not part of the carbon footprint. |
Milk and herd
Metric | Unit | What it means | How to read it |
Milk production (FPCM) | kg FPCM / year | The farm's annual milk production as fat-and-protein-corrected milk, which adjusts raw volume to a standard fat and protein content so farms can be compared. | It is the denominator of the carbon footprint, so a change in milk volume moves the footprint even when emissions do not. |
FPCM per cow | kg / cow | Milk production per animal for the year, on the same corrected basis. | Higher-yielding farms often have a lower footprint per kilogram of milk. |
Animals | head | The whole herd: lactating cows, dry cows, heifers and calves added together. | An average across the periods you entered in the assessment, not a headcount on one date. |
Herd composition | head | The herd split into lactating cows, dry cows, heifers and calves. | Each figure is an average across the periods you entered — monthly, quarterly or yearly. |
Performance and sustainability
Metric | Unit | What it means | How to read it |
Nitrogen use efficiency (feed and forage) | % | The share of the nitrogen coming onto the farm in feed and fertiliser that leaves it again in milk and meat. | Always a percentage between 0 and 100. Higher is better. |
Grass fed | % | The share of the herd's diet that comes from grazed grass. | Neither high nor low is better in itself. It describes the system the farm runs, not how well it performs. |
Days at grass | days / year | The number of days a year the herd grazes outdoors. | A figure you entered in the assessment, not a calculated result. |
Feed concentrate | kg / year | The total quantity of concentrate feed used over the year. | Read it against herd size. The total on its own says little about how intensively the cows are fed. |
Protected urea | % of total N fertiliser | The share of nitrogen fertiliser applied as protected, or stabilised, urea. | Higher is better. Protected urea reduces nitrogen losses. |
Dry matter intake (DMI) per animal type | kg DM / animal / day | Average daily dry-matter feed intake for each class of animal: lactating cows, dry cows, heifers and calves. | Per animal per day, not per year. |
Certifiability | % | A data quality score for the assessment, based on the inputs provided and the farm's nitrogen use efficiency. | Between 0 and 100%, higher is better, with a rating label alongside it. A low score points at the assessment's data rather than at the farm's performance. |
Coverage
Metric | Unit | What it means | How to read it |
Completed assessments | assessments | The number of farm carbon assessments completed with a valid result for the selected year. | Assessments that were completed but failed validation are counted separately and are not included here. |
Farm assessment coverage | % | The share of the farms on your platform that have a completed, valid assessment. | Higher is better. It counts farms covered, not assessments completed. |
Number of farms | farms | The total number of farms on your platform. | A farm does not need an assessment in every year, so this figure and the assessment count can differ. |