Carbon Footprints: Are Cattle The Culprits?

Most of us are all too familiar with the infamous 2006 study that declared domesticated livestock produces 18% of the world’s anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. The report also fingered runoff from pastures for creating dead zones in the ocean, where aquatic life can’t survive because unicellular organisms proliferate from the extra nutrients, die, and decompose.

The big problem with all this, of course, is that the report is not accurate, but the livestock industry has been dealing with the fallout ever since. In efforts to counteract the misleading information, several researchers have conducted numerous studies to prove that industrialized nations, including the U.S., manage livestock very efficiently. One of these researchers, Jude Capper, Dairy Science at Washington State University assistant professor, has conducted research calculating how scientific advances have reduced emissions per unit of production. Capper will share her findings during MonDak Ag Days, when she will discuss carbon footprints and are cattle really the culprits. Capper will speak at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 12 at the Richland County Fair Event Center.

“Improved productivity has helped the cattle industry to reduce resource use, including water, land and energy, and carbon emissions over time,” Capper remarks. “If we improve productivity, we cut our total carbon footprint.”

Carbon footprints with its environmental impacts continue to increase in importance for many people, so Capper believes this issue is vital to livestock owners. “Environmental impact is rising to the top of all food stakeholders’ agendas, and livestock tends to be highlighted as a major player in greenhouse gas emissions,” says Capper. “This is a seriously important topic that everybody in the industry needs to be aware of. It is a subject that’s not going to go away.”

She adds, “I’m demonstrating through research that by doing exactly what ranchers do best, improving nutrition, management and genetics, that the environmental impact of cattle is reduced. Every system does have the opportunity to reduce its environmental impact through improved productivity.”

Researchers everywhere have listed the year 2050 as a defining year for population versus food production, and Capper agrees. She says that by 2050, world demand for meat will double. “By 2050, we’re anticipated to have a global population of over nine billion people, which is a 50% increase,” she remarks. “To feed these people, we’ll need 100% more food. To improve the environmental impact of that increased food need, we’re absolutely going to have to improve productivity.”

Capper, born in the UK, serves as an assistant professor of dairy science in the Department of Animal Sciences at Washington State University. She splits her time between teaching, extension and research. Her current research focuses on modeling the environmental impact of livestock production systems. Her work includes the comparison of historical and modern production practices in the dairy and beef industries, and how the use of technology and management practices reduce environmental impacts.