View at sustainability in dairy sector: Current state and perspectives

Milk and dairy products are nutritionally rich foods, providing energy and high-quality proteins along with a number of essential micronutrients. In this way, the dairy sector supports the existence of people in food chains around the world. Human activities affect the Earth's climate because they cause the release of huge amounts of greenhouse gases, which are retained in the Earth's atmosphere along with the gases that are naturally present in it. Food and drink are considered to be responsible for 20 to 30% of the impact on the environment, in which meat and dairy products are the most important. Research and methodologies are mostly focused on the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG), but numerous other impacts on the environment must also be taken into account, such as impacts on land and water through various types of pollution. In addition, the consumption of scarce water reserves and energy resources is also taken into account. Therefore, a sustainable approach to food and beverage production has no alternative. The dairy sector faces challenges to which it responds with numerous organized and synchronized actions and projects in order to successfully restructure and fit into the overall human activities to reduce pollution. Sustainability itself has 3 dimensions, ecological, economic and social. The aim of this paper is to present the current situation of sustainability in the dairy sector in the world and numerous activities undertaken by various actors in the dairy sector, from farm entities and dairy companies to various associations and umbrella organizations such as the International Dairy Federation, the European Dairy Association as well as non-specific dairy-strictly unrelated bodies. All activities are carried out in coordination and under the auspices of the United Nations and its organizations, primarily the Food and Agriculture Organization.