In case you missed it, three of the manure methane reduction grant programs administered by CDFA OARS announced awards in December 2025, closing out the year with some exciting news. The awarded projects represent important progress in the dairy and livestock sector towards meeting the State’s methane reduction targets and expands the overall impact of these incentive programs. Including the newest awards, projects supported by the three programs to date will reduce an estimated 27.43 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents over their minimum projected lifetimes.
AMMP and DDRDP:
In the fall of 2025, the Alternative Manure Management Program (AMMP) and the Dairy Digester Research and Development Program (DDRDP) received $7 million in Greenhouse Gas Reduction Funds as part of an amendment to the Budget Act of 2025 – these funds were part of a previous appropriation split across two fiscal years. The arrival of the $7 million allowed the two programs to offer some additional awards to those that had applied in the most recent grant round but had not yet received an award due to insufficient funds, boosting the total number of projects captured by the 2024 AMMP and 2024 DDRDP solicitations.
In December 2025, the AMMP announced the addition of 5 new projects, receiving $3.69 million in grant funds, to the 25 projects originally awarded in April 2025. The DDRDP added 2 new projects, receiving $2.6 million, to its list of 5 originally awarded projects.
Dairy Plus Program:
The Dairy Plus Program is a collaborative effort between CDFA and the California Dairy Research Foundation, funded by the USDA Advancing Markets for Producers initiative. Just before the end of 2025, DPP announced awards for its second grant solicitation round. The program awarded 23 projects associated with newly awarded, in-progress, or previously completed AMMP or DDRDP projects a total of nearly $27 million in federal grant funding, matched by more than $28 million from private sources and state Greenhouse Gas Reduction Funds.
Despite a lengthy delay due to federal transitions, the awards were highly anticipated as these projects install advanced, larger scale manure management practices. These practices not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions but also help manage nitrogen and salt surplus, improving water quality and making great strides in dairy sustainability.
Stay up to date on methane reduction program news, including the next call for applications for the Dairy Plus Program expected in early 2026 – visit our webpages or follow us on social media!
What are the practices that reduce methane? The article says nothing concrete. Just showing that money is flowing is not comforting.
Thanks for the question. California’s methane strategy focuses on concrete, on-farm practices, rooted in science. Through CDFA’s programs we support practices like pasture-based management, compost bedded pack barns, solid separation, and converting from flush to dry scrape manure systems (AMMP), as well as anaerobic digesters that capture methane and turn it into renewable energy (DDRDP). We also fund research on manure management, measuring and validating practice impacts, and feed and management practices that reduce methane from cow digestion.
You can learn more about our funding for on-farm practices here: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/oars/onfarm-funding/
Lots of money talk but no specifics on what these dollars will actually accomplish.
The investments from both the State and the Federal government are tied to specific actions and measurable results to meet California’s goal of cutting dairy and livestock methane 40% below 2013 levels by 2030 (SB 1383) and sustainable production of milk in the US.
So far, CDFA’s methane programs have funded:
– 142 digester projects (DDRDP) capturing methane and producing renewable energy — delivering 24.8 million MTCO₂e in lifetime reductions (≈ 5.7M cars off the road for a year)
– 200 manure management projects (AMMP) shifting manure from wet to drier systems — delivering 1.65 million MTCO₂e over 5 years (≈ 386,000 cars)
– 37 Dairy Plus projects accelerating methane-cutting technologies and practices in addition to improving water quality and nutrient management – delivering an extra 1.5 million MTCO2e in lifetime reductions together with AMMP and DDRDP (~353,000 cars)
For more information, visit our website: cdfa.ca/gov/oars.