Environment

Dietary supplement reduces methane emissions from cows by a quarter

The digestive systems of cows could help us tackle the problem of plastic pollution
Nick Lavars/New Atlas
The digestive systems of cows could help us tackle the problem of plastic pollution
Nick Lavars/New Atlas

Cows are a huge source of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, so more and more scientists are looking at how we could tweak their diets for the good of the environment. Scientists at Pennsylvania State University have made yet another discovery in this area, finding that adding a single supplement to the feed of cows can cut their methane emissions by around 25 percent, without affecting their milk-producing capacity.

As cows digest their food, microbes in their stomachs break down the materials and produce methane, which builds up until it is released primarily via the mouth in the form of burps. According to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization, livestock contributes 14.5 percent of all man-made greenhouse gas emissions and the methane they belch out makes up almost half of that, so a small reduction here and there could make a big difference.

Tropical leaves, puffy pink seaweed and fish oils are just a few of the diet supplements that researchers are exploring as a way of putting a dent in bovine methane emissions. The Penn State researchers believe they have found a leading candidate, however, in the form of a compound called 3-NOP.

“3-NOP is the only substance that has worked significantly in reducing enteric methane in cattle and not had unacceptable effects on milk production or quality,” says study author Alex Hristov. “We have tried many things in recent years – including essential oils, oregano and seaweeds – and they either have been ineffective in the long term or need to be investigated further.”

The 3-NOP compound suppresses the activity of an enzyme in the cow’s rumen that is pivotal in the methane production process. The researchers observed this in action during a 15-week study, through which they looked at how the compound affects fermentation in cow bellies along with their lactational performance and the properties of their milk.

Compared to a control group of cows fed a regular diet, those consuming the 3-NOP compound decreased their daily methane emissions by 26 percent. Furthermore, it didn’t impact their lactational performance or the properties of the milk they produced, while actually increasing their feed efficiency per unit of milk yield. And because it is a relatively cheap compound, the researchers are hopeful it could see widespread uptake around the world.

“It could be a game changer, but the question is, will the public accept it,” Hristov says. “It’s a very small synthetic molecule that is metabolized very quickly and falls apart into compounds that are naturally present in the rumen of the cow. Consumer insight studies in the U.S., New Zealand and the Netherlands are showing considerable support for implementing 3-NOP.”

The research was published in the Journal of Dairy Science.

Source: Pennsylvania State University

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Flipboard
  • LinkedIn
8 comments
aksdad
You know climate "science" is on the crazy train when they get fund studies to reduce cow farts. We're in uncharted waters here.
Zerozen
Climate Science is should not be about cutting carbon emission. it should be regulating all "Green House" gas emission, and climate engineering.
JDC1
Wonder if this stuff work for other animals? My bulldog could use a few doses.
Christian Lassen
Other than the emissions used for transportation and processing, I'm not understanding how livestock isn't carbon neutral. Livestock only grows by absorbing carbon, and the plants and food grown to feed the cow is also absorbing carbon. IE, carbon is sequestered by the plants, eaten by the cow, and what's unused goes back into the environment to be sequestered by the next plant or cow or whatever.

Did I miss something?
Ste Vae
This is moronic at best... STOP changing the diet's of animals to suit man's delirium! Cows should be grass fed. PERIOD!!!! YOU are so caught up in trying to accomplish something that is a fabricated cause anyway, that you don't even bother to think of SHOULD you do it, and how you are screwing up nature to do it... Like I said, MORONIC.
Aross
Blaming cows for climate change is ridiculous. The planet used to be covered by bovines without impact. It was only after man domesticated them and started feeding them stuff they never ate before and introducing super bacteria to help them digest this stuff, corn, that methane became a problem. Lets put the blame where it lies and start tackling the real problem.
Douglas Rogers
Termites produce most of the methane, although reducing methane from cows has some value. Irrigated alfalfa farming to feed the cows produces a large amount of water vapor in an arid environment. This outweighs the methane.
ljaques
No, the public won't accept it. They don't accept rBST. They don't like overly-antibioticed cows. And they don't accept chocolate cows (just milk). The answer is a resounding NO, JDS!