Portable accumulation chambers bring cattle emissions testing to the farm

A cow in one of AgResearch's portable accumulation chambers. Photo / Jodie Gibson

A new portable technology has been developed to measure on-farm methane emissions from cattle.

The portable accumulation chambers, developed by AgResearch, will bolster efforts to reduce the climate change impact from livestock in New Zealand and overseas.

They are designed to be transported by road to farms or central locations where the cattle can be quickly and efficiently tested to see how much methane they naturally emit.

These measures will help farmers understand what the climate change impact is from their herd and individual animals, and assist in breeding lower-emitting animals.

Methane is a relatively short-lived but potent greenhouse gas emitted by ruminant animals such as cattle, and methane reduction targets are included in climate change legislation.

Breeding animals that naturally emit less methane is one way of achieving reductions without cutting stock numbers.

It is already proved in sheep, and low-methane dairy cow genetics are expected to be in the market in the next few years.

AgResearch said the portable cattle chambers provided further options, on top of testing methods already in use, such as fixed “respiration chambers” at a facility in Palmerston North.

These required the animals to be transported there and spend extended periods in those fixed chambers.

AgResearch senior scientist Dr Suzanne Rowe said using a portable system to measure methane emissions from cattle was a first.

“We’ve built a relatively simple chamber that can go where the animals are.

“The cow walks into the chamber and we capture all of the gas that’s emitted from that animal for just one hour.”

That data was then used to rank animals according to their emissions, she said.

AgResearch's portable accumulation chambers measure methane emissions from cattle. Photo / Jodie Gibson

“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 welfare of the animals is carefully monitored when using these portable chambers for both cattle and sheep, and in the rare event they become stressed, they are removed from the chambers.

Rowe said the portable cattle chambers would be an important addition to the toolbox for farmers, in addition to the fixed respiration chambers.

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“We will use the portable chambers alongside the feed efficiency monitoring we already do, but there is also preliminary evidence in sheep that the measures taken in the cattle chambers may provide us some important insights on feed intake and evaluating feed efficiency, as well as methane emissions.”

Rowe said the chambers offered benefits not just for New Zealand, but for other nations that farm livestock.

The portable accumulation chambers, developed by AgResearch, are designed to be transported by road to farms. Photo / Jodie Gibson

“Our portable sheep chambers are now in use in other countries such as the UK, supporting their efforts to reduce farm emissions.”

She said AgResearch was looking forward to trialling the portable cattle chambers overseas.

“Particularly in countries where they have extensive grazing systems and don’t have the infrastructure such as fixed respiration chambers that we are fortunate to have in New Zealand.”

The use of the portable chambers and development of low-methane genetics are part of a nationwide effort with partners such as LIC, CRV, Pāmu, Beef+Lamb New Zealand and the Ministry for Primary Industries to support farmers in reducing their emissions.