Cow Flatulence to Smell Like…Roses?

Scientists in Great Britain have been working to combat greenhouse gases. They haven’t focused upon auto emissions, however. Their concern has been a different kind of emission—cow farts.

"In some experiments we get a 70 percent decrease (in methane emissions), which is quite staggering,"

I’d agree that a 70% reduction is quite significant.

…the secret to sweeter-smelling cows is a food additive based on fumaric acid, a naturally occurring chemical essential to respiration of animal and vegetable tissues.

If it’s a “naturally occurring chemical essential to respiration” they must be simply adjusting the levels of fumaric acid in the system. Like many such solutions the delivery of the additive will be the bigger problem. At least they are working with domestic herd animals and that might make it a bit easier. Will there be regulations requiring all farms to use this additive? How will it impact the cost of producing dairy products and beef? I’ve seen dairy farms that harness the methane production from cows’ fecal matter to produce heat for their barns. Most of these systems are expensive but worthwhile in northern climates. How will this additive affect this?

"In total around 14 percent of global methane comes from the guts of farm animals. It is worth doing something about," Wallace said. Other big sources of methane are landfills, coalmines, rice paddies and bogs.

Okay, let’s stop producing garbage, heating our homes or producing electricity, eating rice and protecting wetlands. What, we can’t do that?

This development will change the old barnyard perfume if it comes to be.