OSU investigates seaweed’s effect on lowering GHG emissions from cattle in the US

The five-year study will focus on one seaweed species — Pacific dulse, which is grown commercially on the Oregon Coast. Researchers will analyze the effects of including this seaweed in the diets of cattle that typically graze sagebrush steppe landscapes — those common in the western United States. “Most of the research on seaweed feed supplementation for cattle has taken place in feedlots,” said Rory O’Connor, a rangeland ecologist with the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service in Burns, Ore., and co-director of the project. “Our work is novel because we are focused on cattle that graze in the sagebrush-steppe ecosystem.” The study will be a continuation of recent research that has found that seaweed diets can reduce methane emissions from cattle, most of which originate from enteric fermentation. “At a time of heightened public concern about greenhouse gas emissions, this project has the potential to help ranchers more sustainably and efficiently produce beef while also providing ...