NEWS FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE September 2023 99 Schothorst Feed Research (SFR) announced that it is now able to offer methane emission measurements with the Greenfeed system as a part of dairy nutrition trials. The Greenfeed system consists of a cubicle where small portions of concentrates are offered to attract the cows. From now on, SFR clients can request methane emission measurements as a part of dairy nutrition trials: “This offers new insights," said Marije van Tol, a researcher at SFR. She explained: “At our research farm, we study the impact of feeding strategies, ration composition, and additives. Not only on production and health parameters but from now on also on environmental aspects.” Concerns about greenhouse gas emissions from livestock and dairy farms, as well as their connection to global warming and climate change, have grown among the general public worldwide in recent years. To evaluate these emissions, there is a need to use reliable methods. The ‘golden standard’ for assessing greenhouse gas emissions is measuring all incoming and outgoing gases from animals kept in climate respiration chambers. This is a very complicated and expensive method, and it does not reflect practical farm circumstances. Enteric methane and other greenhouse gas emissions from ruminants can be mitigated in numerous ways including management of the animals, the diets, and the manure. Dairy farmers, together with the feed sector, are encouraged to further look for strategies to lower methane emissions without affecting the performance and welfare of the animals. With the addition of Greenfeed to the research facilities, SFR can also contribute to achieving this goal. “While the animal is in the Greenfeed, the exhaled air of the cow enters the equipment,” said Van Tol. “The apparatus registers the pipe air flow rate and methane and carbon dioxide concentration in the air sample. From these data, the amount of methane exhaled per cow per day is calculated.” Read more>> SFR clients can now request methane emission measurements rity at Ginkgo Bioworks. "As we lay the foundation for global biosecurity infrastructure, we are thrilled to partner with ILRI/CGIAR to implement programs to detect and respond to future biological threats." Additionally, Concentric and ILRI/CGIAR plan to establish sequencing-based activities for pathogen identification and characterization, and bioinformatics support. As Concentric and ILRI/ CGIAR continue their partnership, data from these programs could be shared with national and international stakeholders to continue critical advancements toward global biosecurity. "ILRI plays a pivotal role in pathogen surveillance, employing a One Health approach in collaboration with a wide range of partners. As part of the CGIAR network, partnerships with private sector groups enhance pandemic preparedness to detect, respond, and blunt emerging infectious disease promptly," said Appolinaire Djikeng, director general of ILRI and senior director for CGIAR Livestock-Based Systems. Read more>>
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