World-leading methane mitigation technology for pastoral farming

Scientists around the world have been looking at ways to reduce the biogenic methane emission from livestock to reduce farmers’ carbon footprint.

Since 2022, the Craigmore farming team has been working with Fonterra trialling a probiotic solution called Kowbucha on our dairy farms at Te Awa and Glen Eyre in Canterbury and Darnley in North Canterbury.

Developed by Fonterra’s probiotics discovery programme and in collaboration with AgResearch, Massey University and DairyNZ, Kowbucha is added to colostrum, milk or calf milk replacer from birth until weaning to influence the gut and immune system of the cow from an early age.

Kowbucha has been shown to reduce feed intake and methane emissions by up to 20% in dairy heifers up to one year of age, without reducing calf live weight gain or health parameters. Importantly, the probiotic product is safe for animals, easy to implement, easily scalable with no impact on milk or meat quality.

Research is ongoing to understand the mode of action and how to extend the benefits of probiotics to lactating dairy cows.

In addition to trialling technology on our farms, Craigmore supports new tools in development, such as our investment with Ruminant BioTech. Ruminant BioTech is developing the world’s leading technology for reducing methane emissions from livestock on pastoral farms.

The key patent-protected technology is a small capsule (‘bolus’), which sits in a cow’s stomach, releasing a controlled dose of a methane inhibiting substance for up to six months. The technology uses a highly pure form of synthetic tribromomethane, a compound found in red algae seaweed.

Field trials have shown the technology can reduce methane emissions by over 70% for up to 100 days with a single treatment. This makes Ruminant BioTech’s solution one of the few viable options for pastoral farming systems, which are responsible for most of the world’s enteric methane emissions.

With a pilot manufacturing facility under construction in New Zealand, Ruminant BioTech is on track to begin commercial sales in Australia by 2025. Pending product registration, New Zealand farmers are expected to have access by 2027.

Ruminant BioTech aims to treat 100 million cattle globally, reducing emissions equivalent to removing 50 million passenger vehicles from the road.