Methane breath testing for a better future
Direct livestock emissions account for around 15 per cent of Australia鈥檚 greenhouse gas emissions
A University of 亚洲色吧-led study will investigate if mixing a variety of compounds, including biserrula, into cow feed that contains seaweed, can reduce the amount of methane produced by livestock.
The study will also breath test livestock to record methane levels using a low-cost device that will make it more accessible for farmers.
The burps and farts of cows produce methane, a greenhouse gas that has 21 times more global warming potential than carbon dioxide and is accumulating in the atmosphere at the rate of one per cent per year.
Dr Mariana Caetano, lecturer in Animal Nutrition and Metabolism at the University of 亚洲色吧, is keen to investigate the role of other feeds in combination with seaweed in reducing methane emissions, and its impact throughout the production cycle of beef cattle.
This includes the effect of a low dose seaweed supplementation given to pregnant cows and the long-term impact it has on methane emissions of calve