Food and Green Nannies New Target: Cows and Sheep

Katie Pavlich | April 07, 2011 1:34 PM

You just can't make this stuff up. The food and green nannies have a new target: cows, goats and sheep. Researchers are suggesting farmers feed their animals environmentally friendly foods in order to reduce methane emissions the beasts produce.

A trial showed that high-sugar grasses could reduce an animal's methane emissions by 20 per cent for every kg of weight gain and naked oats could reduce methane emissions from sheep by 33 percent.

"In the longer term the benefits gained by changing animals' diets will need to be considered against other environmental impacts as well as how practical or costly they are for the farming industry to implement," Defra said in a statement.

Farm animals have been roaming the earth for hundreds of years and have also been emitting methane for hundreds of years. Forcing farmers to feed their animals special food will only be expensive and a burden to both consumers and the agriculture business.