This is a follow-up post to my previous one about deforestation and how can we save the planet earth just by reducing our meat intake.
Apparently, a research done by Kinley of CSIRO and De Nys of James Cook University, shows that adding Asparagopsis taxiformis seaweed to a cow's diet could reduce the amount of methane it emits by 99%. In addition, they tried feeding it to sheeps (2% of the total feed) and their methane production drops by 70%. But this is just in a laboratory setting.
They are now testing it with sheeps in Australia and they found out that:
"There was a 60% methane reduction for a 1% diet of seaweed, but a 2% seaweed diet caused a 70% reduction, and a 3% diet caused an 80% reduction," 1
They are expecting better results when they start feeding cows with dried seaweed.
So, just a sprinkle of this particular type of seaweed is enough to reduce cow's methane emissions.
What makes this seaweed diet effective?
Asparagopsis is so effective because it contains a chemical called bromoform (CHBr3) that interferes with the microbial digestive enzymes responsible for methane manufacture.2
In other words, it contains compounds that limit the ability of certain gut microbes, particularly methanogens, to produce methane. It is most likely that the cow would not notice it at all and just be less gassy.
Happier cows = Happier planet
We found the solution!
But wait, why is it not done everywhere already?
Unfortunately, seaweed isn’t a quick fix for our atmospheric methane overdose. We just don’t make enough. Scientists calculate that it would take some 6,000 hectares (about 15,000 acres) of seaweed farms to supply a mere 10% of Australia’s 29 million cattle; to supply America’s 92 million would take over 30x more.3
Even if it is a great idea to harvest seaweed and feed them to cows, there are other concerns to be addressed.
Although 6,000 hectares of seaweed farm seems attainable because there are bigger shrimp farms than that and even though seaweed farming is already a thing, if we try to scale it, it may damage another ecosystem, and we cannot afford that. Moreover, even if we were able to convince the meat industry to pay to add dried seaweed into their animal feed, shipping it to them would still produce carbon emissions.
This is not a sustainable solution, people just need to eat less meat.
Because indeed, not eating meat reduces the emissions by 100%.
FYI: I found out that bromoform is considered a probable carcinogen by the EPA, and is toxic for many other reasons. 3
