<
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/eating-seaweed-could-make-cows-less-gassy-slashing-methane-emissions-from-grazing-by-nearly-40-percent-180985575/>
"Cows are a gassy bunch. As they stand in fields and munch on grass, the
animals burp and fart—and, in doing so, they release billions of pounds of
heat-trapping methane gas into the atmosphere. In total, the livestock industry
is responsible for between 11.1 and 19.6 percent of global greenhouse gas
emissions, and cow belching is the biggest contributor to that number.
Now, another study is pointing the way toward an emerging solution: seaweed
pellets.
When grazing beef cattle were fed seaweed supplements, their methane emissions
dropped by nearly 40 percent. And this change in diet had no apparent effects
on the animals’ weight or health, researchers report in a new study published
Monday in the journal Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences.
Previous research has shown that seaweed helps cut methane emissions in feedlot
cattle and dairy cows. But the new paper is the first to demonstrate the
effects among grazing beef cattle, which produce more methane than feedlot
cattle and dairy cows because of the high fiber content of the grass they eat.
To test the effects of seaweed, scientists conducted a ten-week experiment at
Matador Ranch in Dillon, Montana. They divided 24 young, neutered, male beef
steers—which were a mix of Angus and Wagyu breeds—into two groups. While the
cattle were grazing in fields, researchers offered one group pellets containing
seaweed (
Asparagopsis taxiformis), which the steers ate voluntarily.
Researchers dispensed the pellets using solar-powered machines that also
measured how much methane the cows produced. The other group of cattle did not
have access to the seaweed pellets.
The seaweed-eating group produced 37.7 percent less methane, on average, than
the control group did. “Considering the substantial contribution of ruminant
livestock to global greenhouse gas emissions… this research offers a promising
avenue for mitigating climate change,” according to the paper."
Via
Reasons to be Cheerful:
<
https://reasonstobecheerful.world/what-were-reading-zohran-mamdani-election-new-york-american-cities/>
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
