Photo Source: Gabriel Peter
New Zealand’s farmers are facing growing pressure over methane emissions, a key issue impacting both the country’s agricultural future and international trade. Sir Peter Gluckman, speaking at the Agriculture and Climate Change Conference in Wellington on 4 December, stressed the need for urgent action.
“We can probably no longer truly claim to be the most greenhouse gas-efficient milk producers in the world,” he warned, underscoring the potential risks of non-tariff trade barriers.
Gluckman emphasised that innovation, coupled with decisive regulatory decisions, is crucial for maintaining New Zealand’s competitive edge.
“The decisions of regulatory agencies are as critical to innovation and its adoption as the science itself,” he observed.
Complexities and Challenges in Methane Reduction
Methane emissions in livestock are a complex issue, according to Sir Peter Gluckman, who emphasised that no simple solutions are available for New Zealand’s pastoral farming system.
“There probably isn’t any easy answer to agricultural methane emissions for NZ’s pastoral farming system,” he said, highlighting the significant challenges ahead. Harry Clark, chief scientist at the NZ Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Research Centre, added that managing public expectations is just as critical.
“They don’t want to hear a story that says we’re investing heavily, and unfortunately, that’s not leading to success,” Clark explained, outlining the centre’s careful and realistic approach to assessing viable solutions.
Innovations Show Promise
The conference showcased several potential innovations, though none offered immediate remedies for methane emissions. Linda Johnson from AgResearch provided an update on genetically modified high metabolisable energy (HME) ryegrass, which she called a “really difficult programme.” Still, she expressed hope for its future, stating,
“We are making amazing progress and [are] potentially another two to five years for commercialisation.” Johnson projected significant long-term benefits, estimating that, with moderate adoption, the ryegrass could generate up to $24 billion over 20 years.
Richard Eckard, chair of carbon farming at the University of Melbourne, spoke on the importance of combining various solutions for methane reduction, or “stacking,” but noted the significant challenges in testing multiple interventions due to the associated costs. “We understand why that happens because it’s expensive enough to run a methane trial on its own, with one intervention, let alone run it with multiple interventions that have three-way interactions,” he explained.
Cost and Consumer Pushback
The economic barrier to adopting methane-reducing technologies was a key topic at the conference, with Richard Eckard pointing out that methane inhibitors must cost no more than seven cents per cow per day for them to be feasible for farmers. “Inhibitors are too expensive to feed, but not if everyone gets involved,” he said, calling for collaboration between stakeholders like banks, meat companies, and dairy processors to share the costs.
Consumer scepticism also poses a significant challenge, as demonstrated by recent TikTok videos of British consumers pouring out Arla milk in protest against Bovaer. “I think it’s something we’ve got to be massively aware of, that it comes from both sides,” Clark commented, stressing the need to address public concerns despite the lack of evidence linking inhibitors to milk residues.
Looking Ahead
Richard Eckard pointed to the high cost of methane inhibitors as a major barrier for farmers, noting that for these technologies to be viable, they must cost no more than seven cents per cow per day. However, most current inhibitors exceed this cost.
“Inhibitors are too expensive to feed, but not if everyone gets involved,” Eckard said, proposing that financial responsibility be shared across stakeholders like banks, meat companies, and dairy processors.
On top of economic barriers, consumer scepticism remains a challenge. Recently, videos circulated on TikTok showing British consumers pouring out Arla milk in protest against Bovaer, the methane inhibitor. “I think it’s something we’ve got to be massively aware of, that it comes from both sides,” Clark remarked, acknowledging the public’s concerns despite no evidence of residues in milk.