- Location
- Shropshire
Surely a disgrace that the levy board is not trying to help Uk farmers reduce greenhouse gas emissions by undertaking a research program that we can all use?
Peter Kendall et al need to pull their finger out!
Climate change and the adhb
- Thread starter Hampton
- Start date
Surely a disgrace that the levy board is not trying to help Uk farmers reduce greenhouse gas emissions by undertaking a research program that we can all use?
Peter Kendall et al need to pull their finger out!
Northeastfarmer
Member
- Location
- Cleveland
What did you expect from them? They don’t even wear a mask when they rob you of levy
- Location
- Shropshire
I expected nothing more, I just thought it needed showing to a wider audience!
Princess Pooper
Member
- Location
- East Mids
You mean you've only just looked? Never heard of the roadmap that has been around for donkey's years? http://beefandlamb.ahdb.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/p_cp_down_to_earth300112.pdf
There has been masses of work already done by AHDB looking at mitigating climate change impacts and across all sectors. Most of it is not 'special' to climate change it's about efficiency - a win-win. I suggest you look here.
http://beefandlamb.ahdb.org.uk/research/climate-change/climate-change-generic/
and some examples
http://beefandlamb.ahdb.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Change-in-the-Air.pdfhttp://beefandlamb.ahdb.org.uk/research/climate-change/climate-change-beef/nutri-beef/
http://beefandlamb.ahdb.org.uk/research/animal-nutrition/animal-nutrition-beef/nutritional-effects-on-heifer-productivity/
- Location
- Shropshire
Actually Ive read most of those papers, and the fact sheets.
Doesn't get away from the fact that the research needs to be more tangible than it was before. Previous research just says becoming more efficient will help reduce gases, however, it doesn't have any figures attached to it. If anything all the research that Ive read from them feels like a literature review of everything previously and ends with "the UK industry is more efficient so not as polluting" which to me seems a bit i'm alright Jack! Particular given the negative barrage happening currently.
Doesn't get away from the fact that the research needs to be more tangible than it was before. Previous research just says becoming more efficient will help reduce gases, however, it doesn't have any figures attached to it. If anything all the research that Ive read from them feels like a literature review of everything previously and ends with "the UK industry is more efficient so not as polluting" which to me seems a bit i'm alright Jack! Particular given the negative barrage happening currently.
Princess Pooper
Member
- Location
- East Mids
That's because it's extremely difficult to say if you do 'x' it will reduce emissions by 'y' with any accuracy. But (for example) reducing lamb or calf mortality means that the dam has not lived for a year eating and burping with nothing to show for it, or reducing age at first calving means the emissions from her non-productive years are spread over more output. Sadly there is still a lot of bad husbandry (and I don't mean this personally) that, if improved, would reduce our carbon footprint more than any radical research.
Soil management, manure management, efficient animal growth (so good welfare) with judicious choice of diet are the main practical points - some of the more cutting edge research on modifying rumen flora and fauna to reduce methanogenesis are not really yet at a practical level so best left to academic research at present.
Soil management, manure management, efficient animal growth (so good welfare) with judicious choice of diet are the main practical points - some of the more cutting edge research on modifying rumen flora and fauna to reduce methanogenesis are not really yet at a practical level so best left to academic research at present.
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- Location
- Shropshire
But where is that quantified?
In my manure management plan estimate the amount of muck a sucker cow produces based on size and tells you how much land you need for all your cows. Where is the research that says a 600kg cow indoor fed silage and outdoor grass will be produce approx Xkg of methane per year. It doesn’t have to be deadly accurate, + or - 10% would be fine. At least we would look as an industry like we are trying a little bit!
I fully understand it’s complicated
In my manure management plan estimate the amount of muck a sucker cow produces based on size and tells you how much land you need for all your cows. Where is the research that says a 600kg cow indoor fed silage and outdoor grass will be produce approx Xkg of methane per year. It doesn’t have to be deadly accurate, + or - 10% would be fine. At least we would look as an industry like we are trying a little bit!
I fully understand it’s complicated
- Location
- Shropshire
How can we possibly know how things could be improved if we don’t have a quantifiable starting point?
Princess Pooper
Member
- Location
- East Mids
https://www.alltech-e-co2.com/beef-tool/
The sheep version of this was definitely developed with AHDB funding but I think the beef one already existed (I don't think Alltech owned ECO2 at the time). AHDB always worked on the principle of not duplicating commercial effort so there was no point in developing another for beef if this one works OK. I know that ECO2 were used to produce the dairy carbon footprint literature after surveying about 120 dairy farms.
However, I do agree that AHDB should be signposting levy payers to suitable tools. Ironically I seem to recall that when I was on the AHDB dairy board - several years ago now - farmers were telling us they did not want money spending on this.
The sheep version of this was definitely developed with AHDB funding but I think the beef one already existed (I don't think Alltech owned ECO2 at the time). AHDB always worked on the principle of not duplicating commercial effort so there was no point in developing another for beef if this one works OK. I know that ECO2 were used to produce the dairy carbon footprint literature after surveying about 120 dairy farms.
However, I do agree that AHDB should be signposting levy payers to suitable tools. Ironically I seem to recall that when I was on the AHDB dairy board - several years ago now - farmers were telling us they did not want money spending on this.