Agriculture accounts for a fifth of France’s greenhouse gas emissions. Among the main culprits: ruminant burps. Enteric methane represents half of the carbon footprint of a dairy farm. Initiatives already exist to try to limit them, such as the “Eco-Methane” approach of the Bleu-Blanc-Cœur association.
In Brittany, after milking, Martine and Joseph Bellier’s cows come out of the barn to graze. The winter period without going out is limited as much as possible.
“ We are growing less and less corn. Before, we did about twenty hectares of corn, now we do about ten “, explains Joseph Bellier. “ That’s less phyto products, and more herbs. For food, the cows go there and so do we. Feeding cows more grass is better than corn and soy, and financially grass is cheaper to produce than corn. »
More grass and a greater need for adaptation on the part of breeders. ” I try to produce as much milk as possible in the spring “, emphasizes Joseph Bellier. And Martine Bellier adds: “ We have also adapted the calving periods. For example, we stop calving from June to August, or even at the beginning of September, because there is a period with the risk of having more drought. A cow that is not in intensive milk production has much less need. If at the very least calved in August, corn would have to be bought, corn given much earlier, and so on. »
More Omega 3, less methane
In the barn, cows and heifers are also entitled to a supplement. ” We have a compound with flax and rapeseed. We also have alfalfa which provides Omega 3. On the methane effect, the higher the value of Omega 3, the more effective the reduction. says Valentin Guillaumel, environment coordinator for Bleu-Blanc-Cœur.
Because the method promoted by the association is based on food. ” The ration is an energy value », explains Valentin Guillaumel. ” Some of the energy is used to produce milk. The more efficient the ration, the better the cow digests the ration, and the more milk it produces and the less methane it emits. The idea is to redirect certain microbes to limit methane emissions and improve milk production in quality and quantity.. »
Other solutions to reduce methane emissions
It is by analyzing the milk that Bleu-Blanc-Cœur assesses the reductions in methane. About one tonne per year for Martine and Joseph Bellier, or more than 25 tonnes of CO2 equivalent. This adaptation has an acceptable downside for breeders. ” We have reduced the quantity of milk per cow, but afterwards the cows are in better shape “says Martine Bellier. ” We manage to keep them longer in lactation and calving too “says Joseph.
These operators essentially rely on a lever. Jean-Baptiste Dollé, head of the environment department of the Livestock Institute, has identified others. ” One of the first solutions is genetics. Nothing has been done so far to select animals that emit less methane. Then there is another lever which concerns the use of additives. We carry out experiments with algae, for example. Adding seaweed to rations will also reduce methane emissions. »
According to Bleu-Blanc-Cœur, the 750 breeders involved in the “Eco-Methane” approach have reduced their emissions by 15%.