Why we should reduce livestock emissions
In Australia, direct livestock emissions account for about 70% of greenhouse gas emissions by the agricultural sector and 11% of total national greenhouse gas emissions. This makes Australia’s livestock the third largest source of greenhouse gas emissions after the energy and transport sectors. Livestock are the dominant source of methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), accounting for 56% and 73%, respectively, of Australia’s emissions.
Benefits of breeding animals for low methane emissions
Co-benefits of breeding for lower methane emissions
There are several benefits, including:
- selecting for low residual feed intake also selects for lower methane emissions and better feed conversion efficiency
- selecting for low emission cattle can increase production from available feed.
Opportunities include:
- progeny of low methane emission bulls produced up to 24% less methane than control groups in trials
- breeding for low methane emissions is a win–win for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing agricultural productivity.
Risks of selecting cattle for low methane emissions
There are several risks:
- Measuring methane emissions is difficult.
- Heritability of low methane emissions is moderate, and genetic gains are likely to be less than 1% per year. Selection on other criteria produces larger production gains.
- The income benefits to smaller enterprises may not be high enough to justify adoption of the practice.
- Increased feed conversion efficiency may result in an increased stocking rate, which may then increase methane emissions in total.
Carbon benefits
There is not an approved methodology for this activity under the Emissions Reduction Fund.