New Zealand’s beef sector and scientists join forces to create environmentally efficient beef
Farmers and scientists are using the latest technology to measure how efficiently New Zealand beef cattle convert feed into liveweight and their greenhouse gas emissions in a cutting-edge trial on a North Canterbury farm.
Cattle of all breeds eat variable amounts each day, some more, some less than their counterparts, while gaining the same weight.
Now, research teams are hoping to use the information from the trial to develop genetic tools that farmers can use to produce animals that feed more efficiently and emit less methane, without reducing the animal’s productivity.
The trial at Te Mania Angus stud near Parnassus has already sparked interest from scientists and farmers in Australia who recently visited the farm.
Geneticists from Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s Informing New Zealand Beef programme, scientists from AgResearch and Te Mania Angus stud are working together on the project.
Head of Genetics at B+LNZ Dr Jason Archer says the goal of the trial is to develop new traits specifically for the New Zealand beef industry so farmers can produce efficient cattle with a light environmental footprint and run productive and profitable farms.
"The feed efficiency of an animal is important to farmers because they’re facing rising costs behind the farm-gate. An animal that can grow or produce more for the same amount of feed eaten is a real advantage for the farmer. At the same time, we are keen to find animals that produce less methane.
"We aim to create two breeding values - the measure of an animal's genetic potential to pass on specific traits to its offspring - one for feed efficiency and another for methane emissions per kilo of feed.
"In sheep, we have shown that we can breed for animals that produce less methane for every mouthful of feed. The goal in this trial is to try and identify those cattle that can do both - produce less methane per kilogram of feed and grow faster per kilogram of feed. That way we can get a double shot of lower methane and better animal performance".
New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions profile is heavily influenced by enteric methane from livestock production, says Dr Archer.
"Methane reductions will be important in future to meet climate commitments and will support marketing efforts around lower carbon input red meat production.
"This becomes more relevant as governments and customers focus on reducing their Scope 3 emissions".
Director at Te Mania Angus Will Wilding says feed intake is measured by feeding silage in a bin that sits on load bar scales.
"Basically the Vytelle Sense system is a big tub of silage sitting on scales. Only one animal can feed at any one time. While the animal eats, the system reads its NAIT identification tag, records which specific animal is eating, and weighs feed before, during and after feeding".
"The system feeds data back to Vytelle in Canada and they collate the data to tell you exactly how much each animal has eaten. When the animals have a drink, they are weighed on scales, providing data for their daily weight gain".
AgResearch then use Portable Accumulation Chambers to measure methane emissions during the trial, he says.
"Farmers will benefit from the trial because they will be able to extract more value from inputs by having a more accurate feed efficiency Estimated Breeding Value (EBV) as a tool in their toolbox.
"Feed efficiency is a moderately heritable trait, and we know we can make good progress in breeding more efficient animals. Research has shown feed efficiency is correlated to reduced emissions. By gradually improving feed efficiency in cattle, we can also reduce emissions.
"Improving feed efficiency and methane output provides a pathway to mitigate potential regulatory risks and offers a competitive advantage to our customers through more productive, lower-emission genetics.
"With the genetic reduction in emissions and a lift in production, I think this is a much better alternative for New Zealand than reducing the national herd to meet commitments. There is also the potential we could grow the national herd and emit less than the targets set".
Will says that the work is not being done for single trait selection and that the Te Mania herd maintains its fundamental breeding policy to ensure other qualities are not lost.
AgResearch principal scientist Dr Suzanne Rowe says the Portable Accumulation Chambers developed by the research institute can be taken by trailer to where the cattle are grazing for methane measurement on site. This technology has addressed a long-standing gap in the ability to effectively measure grazing beef cattle.
"The cow walks into the chamber and we capture all of the gas that’s emitted from that animal for just one hour. We then use this data to rank animals according to their methane emissions. We’ve been doing this for many years with sheep, with thousands of measures on farms around New Zealand, and we’ve been able to prove that is an accurate and effective method".
The measures help farmers understand the emissions profile of their herds and assist in breeding decisions for producing lower methane offspring.
"In addition to the use of these chambers, we are also finding some promise in other simpler methods to gauge the methane output of animals, such as analysing mouth swabs or milk samples.
"What we have also found is that the portable chambers can be useful in providing a rapid insight into feed efficiency, as the carbon dioxide emitted is proportionate to the animals’ metabolism and the breakdown of feed eaten. Collaboration with industry by placing the portable chambers alongside feed intake facilities is enabling further testing and development of this added benefit".
Both Angus and Hereford heifers were tested in the trial. The heifers are part of an across-breed Beef Progeny Test at Pāmu’s Kepler Farm in Manapouri in Southland.
Four other Hereford studs also supported the trial by putting their animals through the feed intake facility and portable chambers to get measures and assist geneticists in collecting a database of information they can use.
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