The cattle industry is one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. First, the land needed to raise cattle can prompt deforestation. But an unexpected other effect of livestock agriculture is the industry’s a large carbon footprint, thanks to the cows themselves and the gas they pass.
A single cow can produce the equivalent of 3 tons of greenhouse gas every year. Research by the United Nations has quantified the actual effect of cow flatulence, revealing that bovine farts produce 4% of all greenhouse gases. Cow’s release greenhouse gases in the form of methane, which has a significantly longer half-life and warming potential compared to carbon dioxide. Thus, how we eat and what we choose to farm to solve the world’s hunger problems can actually contribute to climate change.
Swiss firm Agolin had taken on the challenge of tackling this problem. The Biere, Switzerland based company’s research has led to the production of specialist livestock feed that they say can reduce the methane production of a cow by up to 10%.
Image from Modern Farmer.
“We sell our mixture for around 1 million cows per year… There are 25-28 million cows in the European Union, so it is a big percentage,” said Agolin co-founder Kurt Schaller in a statement to Reuters. According to Schaller, his company’s products prevent an estimated 300,000 tonnes of CO2 from enhancing greenhouse effect.
Agolin’s website claims that their products are all ‘effective, easy to use, and safe’, as well as all being produced to follow European Union regulations for livestock feed. Their feeds formulation is one of herbs, spices, and various other botanical compounds which were selected for their ability to reduce flatulence in bovines. The feed also improves the milk production and gut health of cattle.
The specialized feed was developed to help the cattle industry adhere to the increasingly strict international regulation of the agricultural sector’s methane production. Agolin hopes that more farmers will adopt their feed.
[Source: Good News Network]
