Farming cows are responsible for a large part of the total greenhouse gas emissions on our planet. One way to reduce methane emissions from ruminants is to put seaweed in their feed. New research shows that their farmers then blow up to 82 percent less methane into the air.
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During the digestion process, cows flatten and farm in such a way that they emit a lot of methane. To match the emissions of one cow, a person has to drive 25,000 kilometers per year by car. Methane is harmful to the environment because it increases global warming.
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Scientists have now added seaweed (of the species asparagopsis taxiformis) to the diet of cattle for five months and found that the cattle emitted 82 percent less methane into the atmosphere. The study built on their earlier research that already showed that seaweed had a positive effect on the methane emissions of cows in the short term. “We now have solid evidence that seaweed in animal feed is an efficient way to reduce greenhouse gases and that its efficacy does not decline over time,” said Ermias Kebreab, director of the World Food Center and agricultural scientist at the University of California. He led the research together with PhD student Breanna Roque.
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Cows produce methane through microbes in their stomachs. This happens during the digestion process, which is somewhat similar to fermentation. Methane does not stay in the atmosphere as long as carbon dioxide, but it is more than thirty times more efficient at retaining heat. That is why it is an important greenhouse gas. In the United States, agriculture is responsible for about ten percent of harmful emissions. A large part of this comes from cows, which farm methane and shoot into the air through their nostrils. Methane is also released to a lesser extent by wind from the ruminants.
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Climate activists have long been calling on humanity to eat less meat with the aim of curbing emissions. But according to the researchers, meat production can also be improved so that there is less methane emissions. For example, seaweed can partially counteract this phenomenon. Kebreab and Roque had already demonstrated this in another study with dairy cattle two years ago. A blind taste test showed that the seaweed had no influence on the milk production of the cows. This time they examined cattle for slaughter, but the conclusion was the same: the seaweed did not affect the taste of the meat.
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The challenge now is to find enough seaweed of the species asparagopsis taxiformis to be able to supply the livestock farmers.
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