Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL), a leading provider of daily data and insights about Earth, today announced the completion of a successful pilot program with Organic Valley, a national organic food brand and independent cooperative of small family farms, to utilize satellite technology to efficiently measure pasture health on dairy farms. By using Planet’s near-daily satellite images, farmers accessed reports to improve their use of pastures and herd nutrition, and to contribute to sustainable agricultural practices like regenerative rotational grazing. The pilot program started with 20 farms and after a successful implementation, Planet’s satellite insights are being extended to about 100 Organic Valley farms this year; after proof of scale, the program will then be offered to their entire membership.

Planet’s relationship with Organic Valley highlights both companies’ shared values in sustainability and social impact. The small, organic family farms of Organic Valley manage more than 175,000 acres of pastureland by using regenerative farming practices, in which the cooperative members’ cows graze in-pasture on average over 180 days per year, leading to improved soil and water quality, carbon sequestration, and improved animal well-being. Through intensive rotational grazing, herds are moved frequently between divided pastures. Traditional on-the-ground practices of monitoring the quantity of pasture vegetation is time-consuming and labor-intensive, but Planet’s satellite-enabled datasets now support a more efficient monitoring system, saving time and money for farmers. Organic Valley estimates their farmers will be able to capture at least a 20% increase in pasture utilization through this satellite technology, successfully digitizing and modernizing rotational grazing practices.

“People don’t always realize how using data captured from space could support farming initiatives at any scale. Our relationship with Organic Valley is very compelling, as we work in tandem to build tailored solutions for each unique farm operation. We are also thrilled to see Planet’s offerings used by such a sustainability-minded company,” said Misty Tucker, Planet’s Global Agriculture Industry Principal.

During their pilot program, Organic Valley worked directly with Planet’s Professional Services team to develop a comprehensive tool that uses Planet’s Data and Orders APIs to select and order farm-level satellite imagery. From these images, Organic Valley generates pasture reports for its farmers that support data, including NDVI metrics, a technique for measuring vegetation presence and health. The pasture reports provide pixel-level detail allowing farmers to identify trouble spots due to overgrazing and excessively wet or dry conditions. This innovative use of technology not only saves farmers time but also removes the subjectivity inherent in manual biomass measurements, moving from estimates to actuals.

“Our goals are to support our farmers, helping them raise happy cows and continuously improve their farm ecosystems, and with Planet’s highly accessible satellite datasets, we have been able to advance these goals. We see this tool as a long-term project that will scale and evolve overtime as we learn about our needs and Planet continues to innovate,” said Organic Valley Senior Sustainability Manager Jessica Luhning.

About Planet

Planet is a leading provider of global, daily satellite imagery and geospatial solutions. Planet is driven by a mission to image the world every day, and make change visible, accessible and actionable. Founded in 2010 by three NASA scientists, Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest Earth observation fleet of imaging satellites, capturing over 30 TB of data per day. Planet provides mission-critical data, advanced insights, and software solutions to over 800 customers, comprising the world’s leading agriculture, forestry, intelligence, education and finance companies and government agencies, enabling users to simply and effectively derive unique value from satellite imagery. Planet is a public benefit corporation trading on the New York Stock Exchange as PL. To learn more visit www.planet.com and follow us on Twitter.

About Organic Valley

Organic Valley is passionate about doing what’s right for people, animals, and earth and is committed to bringing ethically made organic food to families everywhere. Organic Valley is the largest farmer-owned organic cooperative in the U.S. and one of the world's largest organic consumer brands. Founded in 1988 to sustain family farms through organic farming, the cooperative represents approximately 1,700 farmers in 34 U.S. states, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit ov.coop/impact. Organic Valley is also @OrganicValley on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

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