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Outcomes and future directions from the National Livestock Methane Program in Australia.
The National Livestock Methane Program (NLMP) was a collaborative and coordinated research effort run by Meat and Livestock Australia. The investment in methane research was initiated by a federal government program, filling the Research Gap. This overall initiative also included other national programs of work in soil carbon, nitrous oxide and manure management. The program aims were to provide Australian livestock producers with practical strategies and tools to help them increase productivity and profitability and at the same time lower methane emissions.
NLMP was a $33.5 million investment over three years and consisted of 17 projects in 5 themes of work: 1. Forages 2. Supplements 3. Beef genetics 4. Rumen microbiology and 5. Measurement. Three overarching themes linked the program of work within NLMP. Firstly to develop a greater understanding of the underlying mechanisms in the production and control of methanogenesis, secondly identification of methods or farming practices that might apply to the federal government Carbon Farming Initiative (a scheme that offers income opportunities for carbon abatement) and c. communication products for use by partners.
A variety of outcomes included knowledge of the relationship between productivity and methane emissions, identification of methane abatement from various forages, the role of supplements such as red algae and grape marc, the role of wheat in dairy diets, identification of potential plant bioactives, new bacterial species and knowledge of rumen methane pathways. A national needs and gaps analysis that included a marginal abatement cost curve (MACC) analysis was conducted to determined future priorities for research based on a range of investment criteria.
Keywords: Methane research, forages, supplements, carbon schemes