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Research Overview

Our Project Partners

DSWR is conducted with seven universities and one U.S. Department of Agriculture research location, all known for their research capabilities, quality and commitment. These research partners form the basis of the project by setting up the experiments, conducting and coordinating the onsite field work, collaborating with the farmers/site leads, taking samples, ensuring all data is of the highest quality, sharing results with other sites and working with with the full project team.

Now Available: Project Progress Update for 2024

Project Progress Update: 2023

The research sites represent different climates, soils and management practices in major dairy regions of the country, encompassing a diverse representation of dairy farms and their operations. Each site follows a similar experimental design; however, it is tailored specifically to that research partner’s region and management practices. In this way, DSWR provides researchers with the ability to compare results across regions.

Click on map logos for more information on the partners.

Our Project Leaders

The DSWR project was initiated by Dairy Management Inc. (DMI), the nation’s dairy research and promotion program, and the Soil Health Institute (SHI), a nonprofit organization focused on protecting the vitality and productivity of the soil. The organizations collaborated on the project design and development and manage day-to-day project operations.

Soil Health Institute logo

Prior Team Members

The DSWR project has the opportunity to work with excellent researchers from participating research teams. We also acknowledge and thank those researchers and project team members who participated in DSWR but have moved on to other opportunities including: Jim Wallace (DMI), Karl Czymmek (DMI), Jason Trout (DMI), Abigail Baxter (USDA ARS – Idaho), Andrew Bierer (USDA ARS – Idaho), Perejitei Bekewe (Cornell University), Helen Solecki (Cornell University), Jasdeep Singh (Cornell University), Gregory Godwin (Cornell University), Kishan Mahmud (UW-Platteville), Matt Harper (UW-Platteville), Ken Casey (TX A&M AgriLife Research), Nick Wilker (UW-Madison), Nate Lund (UW-Madison), Marie English (University of Vermont), Pahoua Yang (UC Davis/UC ANR), and Carolyn Gibbs (Newtrient).

Project Publications and Presentations

Baxter, Abigail E., April B. Leytem, Dan Liptzin, Andrew Bierer, Reza K. Afshar (2024). Effect of dairy manure-based fertilizers on nitrous oxide emissions in a semi-arid climate. Soil Science Society of America Journal. https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20751

Bock, Bert (2025). Rationale for Evaluating Sedron and DAF Manure Products in a Systems Comparison in the Dairy Soil and Water Regeneration (DSWR) Project. Presented to the DSWR project team. Watch the recording here; use passcode: .G@!dTm3

Che-Jen Hsiao, Mara Cloutier, Daniel Liptzin, Nathaniel Looker, Christine Molling, Michael Cope, Randall D. Jackson, Gregg R. Sanford, Matthew D. Ruark, Dennis Busch, Karl Czymmek, Quirine M. Ketterings, Reza Afshar, Jourdan Bell, Robert Hagevoort, Cristine Morgan (2026). Management practices and soil health: Insights from dairy farms in the United States. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. Volume 396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2025.109969

Crops & Soils Magazine; 2024. Manure, Environmental Impact, and Soil Health: Technologies, Application, and Benefits; https://acsess.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/crso.20332 

Sadeghpour, A., Afshar, R., 2024. Livestock manure: From waste to resource in a circular economy. Journal of Agriculture and Food Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafr.2024.101255