A vital experiment to address the effect of cattle on climate change is underway in our own neighbourhood, as a farm in the North Bay approaches carbon neutrality.
According to scientists, methane is 25 times more powerful than carbon dioxide.
UC Davis professor Ermias Kebreab has been spearheading studies on how feed additives like red seaweed might minimise methane emissions from animals.
“I see this as a way to drastically reduce methane emissions,” Kebreab remarked.
His most recent experiment, conducted with his team of animal scientists, involves the addition of grape pomace, a byproduct of winemaking, to cow diet.
“We are looking into some feed additives that would allow us to reduce methane emissions by 80-to-90%, which was unthinkable about ten years ago,” said Kebreab.
So far, the red seaweed seems to be the most promising.
It includes bromoform, a chemical that reduces methane formation in cow stomachs. The Straus Family Farm in Tomales Bay hosted the first commercial trial in the United States in 2021.
“This is a continuation of what I’ve been working on all my life,” Albert Straus said.
Straus has dedicated his life to making his farm carbon-neutral, including converting heavy gear like the farm’s front loader to all-electric.
The UC Davis research on seaweed feed found that it reduced methane emissions by up to 82%. This indicates that the farm’s organic milk will have a lower environmental effect.
When Blue Ocean Barns’ production ramps up in the following months, the farm anticipates that all of its dairy animals will be given the new seaweed supplement.
“By the end of this year, this dairy will have the same or lower carbon footprint as any plant-based dairy alternative,” Straus said.
Kebreab and animal science specialists in the lab continue to examine what else may be utilised in the battle against climate change, including various additives like almond husks and more, using a machine created to imitate what occurs in a cow’s stomach.
“There’s no better feeling than seeing all of this work being done and implemented in the real world and in scenarios all over the world,” Kebreab added.
It’s a step in the right path to strive for what can be done to reverse mankind’s influence on Mother Nature.
UC Davis researchers are also conducting experiments at a ranch in Montana to evaluate methane emissions from beef cattle.
Straus Creamery believes that by the end of the decade, all 11 of its milk suppliers will be feeding their calves a seaweed diet and will be carbon neutral.
