Cleaning up cow burps could combat global warming

Published Dec 4, 2024

Tridge summary

Livestock are a crucial source of food and income for the poor, but their contribution to the environment is significant as they account for 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, mainly due to methane from digestion. Despite efforts like improving livestock practices and developing feed additives, more needs to be done. Research is underway to breed low-methane-producing livestock and modify the microbes that produce methane. Given methane's short residence time in the atmosphere, reducing its emissions could help slow down climate change immediately. However, reducing methane from livestock is challenging due to its production during the process of breaking down fibrous feed. While measures to improve livestock health and nutrition can slightly reduce methane emissions per unit of meat or milk, more research is needed to estimate the potential global impact of these measures.

Disclaimer: The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

In the urgent quest for a more sustainable global food system, livestock is a mixed blessing. On the one hand, by converting fibrous plants that people can’t eat into protein-rich meat and milk, grazing animals like cows and sheep are an important source of human food. And for many of the world’s poorest, raising a cow or two — or a few sheep or goats — can be a source of wealth. But those benefits come at an immense environmental cost. A 2013 study showed that globally, livestock are responsible for 14.5 percent of greenhouse gas emissions — more than all the world’s cars and trucks combined. And about 40 percent of livestock’s global warming potential comes in the form of methane, a potent greenhouse gas formed as they digest their fibrous diet. This dilemma is driving an intense research effort to reduce methane emissions from grazing animals. Existing methods, such as improved livestock practices and the recent development of feed additives, can help, but not at the scale ...

Source: Agromeat