CH4 Global has begun commercial deliveries of its cattle feed supplement, which is reportedly capable of reducing livestock-caused methane emissions by 90%.
The company's Methane Tamer supplement is made predominantly from Asparagopsis seaweed, a microalgae found in tropical and warm waters that prevents methane gas from forming during the digestive process of cattle.
In addition to beginning deliveries of the product, CH4 has started construction on a commercial-scale facility, what it calls an “EcoPark,” for growing Asparagopsis in large saltwater ponds. The site, located in Louth Bay, South Australia, will reportedly be the first in the world, and it is expected to eventually produce enough Asparagopsis to supply up to 30,000 cattle each day.
“2024 marks a pivotal year, one when the world wakes up to seaweed’s massive potential for curbing enteric methane emissions and we as a company aggressively scale up our efforts to combat climate change,” said Steve Meller, CEO of CH4 Global. “The first commercial delivery of Methane Tamer and the commencement of our Eco Park construction are concrete milestones in our quest to achieve a billion metric tons reduction in CO2-equivalent emissions by 2030.”
Cows naturally produce methane, a highly potent greenhouse gas that is known to trap heat in the atmosphere. The EPA estimates that one cow produces between 154 to 264 pounds of methane gas each year. With a significant amount of human-caused methane emissions stemming from livestock farming, the agricultural sector has been urged to find innovative ways to reduce this impact.
At the end of 2023, world leaders at COP28 expressed an urgent need to incorporate the agricultural sector in global efforts to mitigate the impacts of climate change. Research indicates that the largest meat and dairy companies have failed to reduce emissions on the whole, and demand for animal protein is only expected to increase in the coming years.
The EPA has confirmed the effectiveness of Asparagopsis-based feed additives. However, the agency expresses that the solution is not currently available at scale and may not fully accommodate the outsized number of cattle farms around the world, or even in the U.S. alone. Meanwhile, scientists suggest further research be conducted on the long-term effects of seaweed-based feed additives to explore how they may impact animal health and reproduction as well as food and dairy quality.
Other methane-reducing measures are more widely available in the meantime, including manure management strategies or the use of digesters that may turn methane emissions into fuels and fertilizers.
