Chewing the cud could sink the planet

But seaweed may come to the rescue

Dear Global Jigsaw,

When I last covered a United Nations climate change meet, many moon ago, some of the most visible NGO campaigners milling around outside the conference venue were dressed as large, furry animals. As they distributed vegan sandwiches to all who would accept them, their message was simple: “Less meat means less heat.”

The policy debates surrounding global warming tend to focus on fossil fuels and carbon emissions. And most solutions to climate change therefore tend to centre on developing renewable energies and increasing efficiency in the transport and building sectors.

Far less attention is garnered by the warming consequences of rearing and consuming livestock. In fact, the methane released when ruminants like cows and sheep belch or pass gas, which they do copiously, combined with the indirect emissions associated with their life cycles, contributes 18 percent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, even more than the transport sector, according the Food and Agricultural Organization.

This figure considers both the direct and indirect emissions related to livestock. The latter include emissions from the process of feed production, including chemical fertilizer manufacture, deforestation for pasture and feed crops, cultivation of feed crops and feed transport. And former relates to the enteric fermentation (which results in their passing gas) of ruminants, and the nitrous oxide emissions released from their urine and manure. The inconvenient truth is that what’s on the dinner plate can link to climate change as much as driving an SUV.

According to the FAO, livestock contributes only about nine percent of total anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions, but 37 percent of methane and 65 percent of nitrous oxide emissions. This is significant because methane and nitrous oxide cause far greater warming than equivalent amounts of carbon. On a 100-year timescale, methane has 28 times greater global warming potential than carbon dioxide and is 84 times more potent on a 20-year timescale. And according to the International Energy Agency, the annual increase in methane concentration from 2020 to 2021 was the highest on record and real-time data shows that levels continued to increase in 2022.

A single dairy cow is believed to release between 259-500 liters of methane per day by burping.

Enter Sunshiki Co, a seaweed startup in Japan focused on reducing bovine belches by adding a red algae species, Asparagopsis taxiformis, to cattle feed. Their research has shown that the admixture reduces methane emissions in cows by more than 90 percent.

The Global Jigsaw interviewed the CEO of Sunshiki, Ryo Kubota, to learn more. The interview is paywalled. Please upgrade to a paid subscription to access it.

However, if you are unable to afford to support my work and would still like to read it, DM me and I will send you a word document.