How to Reduce Methane Gas From Cows

Methane is a gas that cows and other ruminant animals produce during their food digestion process. As a greenhouse gas like carbon dioxide, methane may contribute to global warming by trapping heat in the Earth̵7;s atmosphere. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, cattle alone produce approximately 20 percent of all methane gas emissions in the United States. Learning various methods for reducing methane gas emissions from your cows can help minimize the negative effect your cattle may have on the environment.

Things You'll Need

  • Grain
  • High-quality hay
  • Herd records
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Instructions

    • 1

      Adjust your cows̵7; diet. Provide them with feed ingredients that are easier to digest, such as grain; consider grinding and pelleting forage that you feed to them in order to make it more digestible. According to Penn State University, feeding high-quality hay can also reduce your cows̵7; methane production. Don̵7;t forget to provide them with a mineral mix that supplies essential vitamins and minerals, as well.

    • 2

      Manage your pastures more effectively. It is the extended digestive process your cattle utilize when consuming poor-quality hay and pasture that typically produces the most methane gas. Plant higher-quality forages, such as alfalfa, and varieties of grass that have high sugar levels, such as bird's-foot trefoil, which can help ease the digestive process.

    • 3

      Increase the efficiency of your cattle herd. Analyze your herd records to determine which cows are poor producers. What cows have unusually long calving intervals (the time between successive calvings)? Which cows produce the least amount of milk in your dairy herd? Cull (sell for slaughter) these animals from your herd; this practice cuts down on the number of less efficient animals in your herd.

    • 4

      Breed your cows selectively. Concentrate on breeding your cows to bulls that improve their meat or milk productivity. For instance, if you own dairy cattle, breed your milking cows to bulls that sire daughters with a history of high milk production; this way, your top-producing cows will have daughters that should be able to outperform their dams (mothers), ultimately reducing your need for so many animals.

    • 5

      Use artificial insemination to breed your cows. This breeding technique gives you access to numerous sires across the United States and the world, so you have a much better choice when deciding what genes (such as meat production) you wish to improve in each of your cows. Artificial insemination also keeps you from having to raise bulls on your farm as herd sires, which reduces the number of cows producing methane gas and makes your farm a safer place.