“My wife grew up on a dairy. She told me that cows don’t really fart. I assumed they did.”
And “they” know this too. That is why they tried to change the narrative keyword to cow “burps” instead of farts.
Cows don’t produce much gas any gas from the intestinal tract uunlike monogastric animals which have large colonies of bacteria in our lower GI tract which generates CO2 mostly and methane in small amounts. When monogastrics pass intestinal gas it’s not primarily methane it’s CO2
and nitrogen with trace methane only a tiny percent of people make enough methane to light it on fire should they pass it close to an open flame. Personally tested this and only one of five people we tested could be lit.
Cows and all ungulates ferment cellulose with bacterial colonies in their multi chambered stomachs so any methane produced is before the upper or lower iintestines and the pathway out of the animal is the esophagus not via the colon that’s many feet of animal away from from those colonies.
The ingredient likely responsible for the methane reduction is seaweed it inhibits an enzyme that methogens need to use to make.methane. Remember it’s the bacteria making the methane not the cow. The cow cannot digest grass aka cellulose it needs it’s bacteria to first produce cellulase enzymes that break the cellulose down to acetic acid which is the primary metabolic energy source of the cows metabolism. Methogenic bacteria also eat acetic acid and turn it into more bacteria and methane. While the cow gets its energy for metabolic use from the acetic acid its protein source is the very bacteria doing the work for the cow. Nearly all the protein in the intestinal tract absorbes in a grass feed cow is symbiotic bacterial in source. Grass is only 11% or so incomplete protein ,bacterial proteins are complete and 60+% by mass. Cows quite literally are bacterial fermentation factories they live only because of the massive amounts of bacteria in their stomachs ,intestines and colon. Cow fecal material is over 50% bacterial by mass and it’s so high in protein pigs will eat it as a primary food source. You can raise hogs nearly completely off cattle droppings as their primary protein source and a majority of their carbohydrate as well.
Here is one of many studies of using seaweed to inhibit methane production in cattle. Which regardless of the climate nonsense is good for the cow. Why? Every burb of methane is wasted energy for the cow that bacteria used to make methane taking from the acetic acid the cow needs to live and grow. Large amounts of gas can also give a cow bloat which can kill it so inhibiting gas production eliminates bloat less dead cows from bloat = more meat and milk and leather. Don’t be knee jerk , finger in the ears like lefties screaming orange man bad like they do but in this case screaming actual science bad it’s not a good look for people who want to be seen as the smarter group.
https://www.ucdavis.edu/food/news/feeding-grazing-cattle-seaweed-cuts-methane-emissions-almost-40