Methane, as many of you are aware, contributes to global warming in the same way as carbon dioxide, but its effect is 25 times greater. Reduction in methane emissions, therefore, is an important goal and has become even more in focus with the Kyoto Protocol.
Alexander Hristov, an associate professor of dairy nutrition at Pennsylvania State University, has determined that cows are responsible for 37 percent of the human-produced methane worldwide. When a cow digests its food, fermentation breaks down the food into usable nutrients, with by-products of carbon dioxide and methane. Cows, on the average, may belch out nearly 500 to 600 liters of methane each day.
The Penn State research team have found that an oregano supplement added to the cow feed decreased methane emissions by 40 percent, without any negative effects. As it turns out, the oregano supplement is also responsible for an increase of nearly 3 pounds (1.4 kilograms) of milk for each cow.
Hristov said: “Since methane production is an energy loss for the animal, this isn’t really a surprise…if you decrease energy loss, the cows can use that energy for other processes, such as making milk.”
The research will be presented at the 4th International Greenhouse Gases and Animal Agriculture (GGAA) Conference in October in Banff, Canada. The journal, Animal Feed Science and Technology, will feature the results in an upcoming special edition.
For more information see: www.earthportal.org/news/?p=3516
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