Posted on 03/26/2021 8:31:28 PM PDT by DoodleBob
Cow burps are apparently the source of a lot of methane in our atmosphere. And there are a lot of cows on Earth. But a new research mission suggests a great way to reduce those emissions and significantly lower methane, which causes warming on our planet, and its straight from the sea. As reported by the Guardian, adding seaweed to beef cow diets can lower methane by as much as 82%.
“We now have sound evidence that seaweed in cattle diet is effective at reducing greenhouse gases and that the efficacy does not diminish over time,” said agricultural scientist Ermias Kebreab in the Guardian. Kebreab works at the University of California, Davis and is senior author of the research paper.
This is a really big deal for us and our planet. Livestock is responsible for about 14.5% of greenhouse gas emissions, with cows being 65% of that number. The results were published in the PLoS One journal and researchers say the methane reductions through adding seaweed did not affect the cow’s ability to put on weight.
In fact, their seaweed-enhanced diet actually allowed the cows to convert feed to body weight 20% more efficiently. This means less feed can be used to have the cows get to a weight that’s suitable for market. Of course, there are natural questions that still need answers when it comes to the use of seaweed.
Is there enough in the ocean to sustain billions of beef cows around the world? What happens if seaweed is over harvested for this purpose? It’s possible that we could be setting ourselves up for another big problem under the sea while trying to solve a land issue. There are no clear-cut answers for now; but considering how humans can create anything these days, it wouldn’t be shocking to have laboratory seaweed for cows.
Either way, it’s something interesting to ponder. Who knew that seaweed could affect cow burps and make the world less toasty? Our planet is full of surprises.
But the milk tastes fishy.
Does that work for sushi eaters?
I wonder how that makes the meat taste.
IIRC, there are herds of cattle on the Pacific coast of South America that eat seaweed washed up on the beach.
We used to hate the milk when the cows got into onion grass.
I can’t imagine what this will be like...
(But I guess they think we should all drink Almond Milk, or somesuch...)
Bullshit
What’s wrong with Beano?
I tried taking a kelp supplement many years ago. Made me terribly gassy. So not believing this.
Seriously way past time we reign in these federal grant programs. Who the hell has the idea to research what types of food produce the least bovine flatulence?
Just how bat shit crazy must one be to even investigate such a thing? At taxpayer expense of course.
Did the study bother to critically monitor the overall health of the cattle fed this diet? What about the taste of the beef in comparison to the natural diet of cattle of grass and grains? My take is if God intended for cattle to eat seaweed he would have provided them a proclivity to do so.
As for stupid research getting funded, this is one of the less stupid ones I've seen.
Tastes like chicken.
Then again, unlike a cow, you don’t have two stomachs.
Our FRiend mentioned such cows exist in South America. Has anyone done a taste test?
It may be one of the less stupid ones you’ve seen. But anyone who has lived say, 10 years or so, could have told you the answer. Feed mammals beans, they have indigestion. Feed them greens, less so.
Who cares? Maybe other cows?
“I wonder how that makes the meat taste.”
I’ll go out on a limb here and say “not chicken.”
Not me. Perhaps someone could interview the 10’s of thousands crossing our southern border?
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