Improved Feeding Helps Beat Global Warming

A 20-25% reduction in methane produced by cows could be possible simply by implementing more efficient feeding regimes, according to new research.

Delegates at the conference, being staged by Keenan UK, ABNA and supported by Farmers Weekly at Harper Adams University College, Shropshire, will be the first to hear the exclusive results from research on more than 1000 datasets which include estimates of methane production from milking cows.

This research, tested on-farm and supported by scientific research conducted by Keenan International Nutrition Director, David Beever, conclusively shows that improvements to cattle feed conversion, Feed Conversion Efficiency or FCE, can reduce methane production per litre of milk, greatly improving the carbon footprint for milk production.

Professor Beever said: "Methane emissions account for more than half (55%) of agriculture’s gaseous emissions, most of this is from fermentation of feeds by ruminants and production of this is inevitable.

"What we are offering is a better use of feed like a better burn of fuel in cars. This means more carbon, which is really energy, goes to product and less goes to waste which is methane."

In conclusion Professor Beever said "We cannot possibly ignore a nutritional strategy which improves animal health, performance and margin, while able to reduce environmental emissions brings major gains not only for hard pressed dairy farmers, but also for processors and consumers of dairy products."

Overall, this change of feeding practice could yield a 30 kiloton reduction in annual methane emissions from current levels estimated to be at least 200 kilotons.