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Spring
2017
Grains
West
8
BY ANDREA HILDERMAN
THE
FARMGATE
SEACOWS
SEAWEED INCATTLEDIETSCANREDUCE
METHANE EMMISSIONS
CATTLE AND OTHER RUMINANT
animals produce methane gas when they
burp and fart, and, unfortunately, they
burp and fart a lot. This methane repre-
sents about 16 per cent of global green-
house gas emissions, based on Intergovern-
mental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
data from 2010. The IPCC also found
that agriculture, forestry and other land
use accounts for 24 per cent of global gas
emissions, mainly from crop cultivation,
livestock and deforestation. Among the
greenhouse gases, methane is one of the
most concerning due to its e ectiveness at
trapping heat in the atmosphere—it’s 20
times better at trapping heat than CO2.
Confronted with this problem, research-
ers around the world have been seeking
ways to reduce the amount of methane
produced by ruminant livestock. Thank-
fully, a potential breakthrough occurred
right here in Canada, in the form of a
discovery by Prince Edward Island dairy
farmer Joe Dorgan and former Dalhousie
University researcher Rob Kinley.
“A farmer in P.E.I. gave his cows access
to seaweed on beaches adjacent to his
fields,” said Kinley. “He noticed that the
cows that ate the seaweed had increased
reproductive success, reduced mastitis
and improved immunological health. So,
naturally, as a good herdsman, he started
feeding all his other cows seaweed. They
caught up health-wise with the others, and
he also noticed his herd was happier and
more docile.”
Around 2006, Dorgan decided he
wanted to produce a mineral supplement
extracted from the seaweed for the organ-
ic cattle feed market. In order to satisfy
Canadian Food Inspection Agency animal
feed regulations, Kinley conducted a se-
ries of tests in 2008 on Dorgan’s seaweed
feed mixture.
Kinley had the quintessential “aha mo-
ment” when he discovered that methane
emissions were reduced by 20 per cent
in the cows that ate seaweed. His impor-
tant discovery led him to Queensland,
Australia, in 2013, where he continued
his research with the Commonwealth
Scientific and Industrial Research Or-
ganization, in collaboration with Meat
and Livestock Australia and James Cook
University. There, they found a species of
seaweed that reduced methane production
to zero in the lab.
“These were relatively poor samples we
were using at the time,” said Kinley. “Sea-
weed is not readily available like common
feed ingredients. Our next trials were
planned using freshly freeze-dried product
that was three times as potent.”
Eventually, Kinley achieved methane re-
ductions of 85 per cent over time in sheep,
with seaweed inclusion rates of less than
two per cent of their diets.
There are two significant barriers to the
successful use of seaweed in the com-
mercial cattle herd: the level of inclusion
(too much seaweed and the cows might
not eat it) and availability of supply. The
first problem seems manageable, given
the emissions reduction Kinley achieved
with low inclusion rates for sheep, and a
solution to the second problem might also
be within reach.
“In Ireland, we found Ocean Harvest
Technology, a company that is already
producing a variety of seaweed bioactive
ingredients designed to replace synthetic
ingredients in various ag and aquaculture
feed mixes,” said Kinley. “They will be
working with us on the next step of this
incredible journey—the on-farm dairy tri-
al, which we will be conducting in Ireland
for convenience.”
Growing su cient quantities of the
seaweed required will be a big challenge,
but doing so could have a positive impact
on more than just methane emissions.
“Not surprising to me, after everything
we’ve discovered so far, is that growing
seaweed in volume appears to have very
positive benefits on the ocean itself,” said
Kinley. “Seaweeds clean the ocean they
are grown in, reducing acidity by reduc-
ing CO2 levels, and provide habitat for
marine life. This might be the second great
contribution these algae can make—as well
as providing the means for us to reduce
methane emissions by cattle, thus reducing
greenhouse gas emissions and slowing glob-
al warming, seaweed will also help improve
the health and quality of our oceans.”
Photo:RobKinley
Former Dalhousie University researcher Rob Kinley has been able to achieve sizable reductions in methane
emissions from cattle by including seaweed in their diets.