Feed supplement drops methane by 58%

Livestock emissions are a considerable contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, however until recently, there has been no commercial, scalable solution to reduce methane emissions from cows. Over the past 10 years, researchers in the UK and leading European institutions, were funded by the Swiss-based life science group Zaluvida, and have developed a unique, patented natural feed supplement made from fruit and vegetables.

Mootral

This supplement, Mootral (hereafter called ‘feed supplement‘), has been shown to instantly reduce methane emissions from ruminants by at least 30%, helping the livestock industry to reduce carbon emissions immediately. Zaluvida introduced the solution to Danish scientists at the University of Copenhagen and the results of the conducted in-vitro trials shows a strong impact of Mootral on rumen fermentation ultimately impacting climate-change.

Mette Olaf Nielsen, Professor in Sustainable Animal Nutrition, and Hanne H. Hansen, Associate Professor of Cattle Production, Department of Veterinary Clinical and Animal Sciences at Copenhagen University, commented: “A 58% methane reduction was achieved when we added the feed supplement to a typical (Danish) dairy ration of maize silage and soybean cake in our in-vitro test. This is an impressive and exciting result. We will continue our studies with this feed supplement to verify the effects in real cows under farm conditions as part of our ongoing research efforts to find ways to ensure drastic reductions in methane emission and de-criminalise cows in the climate debate. The in-vitro test showed clearly that this feed supplement increased early fermentation and did not affect feed degradability whilst reducing methane.”

Dr Hilde Vrancken, Vice President Research & Development, Zaluvida, added: “We are pleased to see such significant and positive results from the University of Copenhagen, confirming the methane emission reductions we have found with our partners worldwide, both in vitro and in vivo. By using the feed supplement farmers will now have an opportunity to provide meat and dairy products to the consumer while creating an immediate positive effect on the climate and the cow’s health and productivity. Since our market research has shown that consumers are excited about the concept of climate-friendly products, we are looking forward to move forward the discussion around this feed supplement.”

Source: Zaluvida