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ARS Home » Plains Area » Bushland, Texas » Conservation and Production Research Laboratory » Livestock Nutrient Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #291566

Title: Dietary management to decrease methane emissions from beef feedlots

Author
item Cole, Noel
item Todd, Richard
item Hales Paxton, Kristin

Submitted to: Government Publication/Report
Publication Type: Government Publication
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/12/2011
Publication Date: 5/20/2012
Citation: Cole, N.A., Todd, R.W., Hales, K.E. 2012. Dietary management to decrease methane emissions from beef feedlots. Available:www.ars.usdagov/SP2UserFiles/Program/212.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas that can be produced within the digestive tract of domestic (cattle, sheep), and undomesticated (bison, deer, elk) ruminants. This publicatoin gives a brief review of research on dietary procedures that have been tested to decrease enteric methane emissions from beef cattle. Enteric methane emisssions are decreased by feeding diets containing more grain (i.e less forage), and fat. A number of feed additives are potentially available to decrease enteric methane emissions, but most are not currently available or economically justified.