WESTERN PRODUCER — A dairy industry group plans to study methane emissions to find genetic traits in cattle that will reduce greenhouse gases while not cutting production.
Lactanet Canada is expected to launch its methane efficiency program in April, adding the genetic trait to its portfolio in evaluating Holstein dairy cattle.
Brian Van Doormaal, chief services officer with Lactanet, said the initiative is in line with the Dairy Farmers of Canada goal to reach net-zero greenhouse emissions from farm level dairy production by 2050.
Canadian researchers have been tracking methane emissions from dairy cattle for more than five years.
Raw data was collected from 500 cows that were part of a Canadian research herd. Researchers at the University of Guelph found they could predict methane emission patterns from dairy cattle without the need to collect the methane, said Doormaal.
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