Cows Can Serve As 'Allies' In Addressing Climate Crisis Through New Way Of Grazing

Cows are believed to be helpful in addressing climate crisis through a new technique of grazing.

A CNN report said Arizona State University professor and filmmaker Peter Byck has expressed belief that by simply changing the way they are grazed, the cows "can be useful allies in Earth repair."

Byck said this could be done through "Adaptive Multi-Paddock" or "AMP," which is a technique that feeds cattle in a way to imitate how millions of wild buffalo, elk and deer munched wild forage across North America.

How AMP works

The report said that the farmers utilizing this specific technique are using a single line of electric fence to pack their herd into smaller areas in order to maximize manure distribution. After that, they will be moved to the next patch of high grass within a day or two.

"The trick is to eat half of the forage like we eat the tips of asparagus, stomp down the rest and cover the soil so it stays moist and the microbes thrive," Byck explained in the report.

Experts have found that after generations of using fertilizers and pesticides as well as tilling and overgrazing, millions of acres of naturally rich soil have become lifeless dirt and devoid of any kind of microbes and insects.

The CNN report mentioned a remark from Pat Brown, founder of Impossible Foods, in which he said that cows are the most destructive industry on Earth.

However, Byck argued that animals in grasslands have contribute to how nature had built its soil for hundreds of thousands of years.

Byck said he already had the data indicating the utilization of AMP farming pulled down up to four times as much carbon as the conventional grazers. He further said through this practice, the cows burped up to 10% less methane.

Read Also: Cows And Cropland To Save The Planet

Climate change

Meanwhile, a recent report in Vox pointed out the connection between agriculture and climate change.

It emphasized that a huge number of chickens, pigs, cows, and other animals that people raised and slaughtered for food annually accounted for around 15 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

The report noted that this was primarily from cow burps, animal manure, and the fertilizer that was utilized to grow corn and soy.

Citing the International Energy Agency, a Reuters report said cattle is the major contributor to methane emissions from agriculture, which hit 142 million tons in 2022.

Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas emitted by human activities such as leakage from natural gas systems, the raising of livestock, and by natural sources such as wetland.

With the aim to reduce methane in the atmosphere by at least 30% by 2030, European Union member-states have discussed a proposal to impose emission limits on farms, which will later reduce livestock amounts.

Related Article: Cows And Methane Emissions: How Do These Hoofed Animals Contribute To Climate Crisis

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