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Review
. 2022 Dec 23:9:958340.
doi: 10.3389/fvets.2022.958340. eCollection 2022.

Enteric methane research and mitigation strategies for pastoral-based beef cattle production systems

Paul E Smith  1 , Alan K Kelly  2 , David A Kenny  1 , Sinéad M Waters  1
Affiliations
Review

Enteric methane research and mitigation strategies for pastoral-based beef cattle production systems

Paul E Smith et al. Front Vet Sci. .

Abstract

Ruminant livestock play a key role in global society through the conversion of lignocellulolytic plant matter into high-quality sources of protein for human consumption. However, as a consequence of the digestive physiology of ruminant species, methane (CH4), which originates as a byproduct of enteric fermentation, is accountable for 40% of global agriculture's carbon footprint and ~6% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Therefore, meeting the increasing demand for animal protein associated with a growing global population while reducing the GHG intensity of ruminant production will be a challenge for both the livestock industry and the research community. In recent decades, numerous strategies have been identified as having the potential to reduce the methanogenic output of livestock. Dietary supplementation with antimethanogenic compounds, targeting members of the rumen methanogen community and/or suppressing the availability of methanogenesis substrates (mainly H2 and CO2), may have the potential to reduce the methanogenic output of housed livestock. However, reducing the environmental impact of pasture-based beef cattle may be a challenge, but it can be achieved by enhancing the nutritional quality of grazed forage in an effort to improve animal growth rates and ultimately reduce lifetime emissions. In addition, the genetic selection of low-CH4-emitting and/or faster-growing animals will likely benefit all beef cattle production systems by reducing the methanogenic potential of future generations of livestock. Similarly, the development of other mitigation technologies requiring minimal intervention and labor for their application, such as anti-methanogen vaccines, would likely appeal to livestock producers, with high uptake among farmers if proven effective. Therefore, the objective of this review is to give a detailed overview of the CH4 mitigation solutions, both currently available and under development, for temperate pasture-based beef cattle production systems. A description of ruminal methanogenesis and the technologies used to estimate enteric emissions at pastures are also presented.

Keywords: beef cattle; breeding; methane; nutrition; pasture; rumen microbiome.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
An overview of the rumen microbial community and fermentation profile of a low residual methane emissions (RME) phenotype based on the findings of Smith et al. (54). Differences in the size of the shapes representing individual volatile fatty acids (VFAs) and rumen methanogens are reflective of the dominant VFAs methanogen genera in low RME animals.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The Greenfeed Emissions Monitoring (GEM) system for (A) indoor and (B) outdoor use. Image sourced from C-Lock Inc.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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