UK Scientists Developing a Vaccine that Reduces Cow’s Emission

Methane is the second most abundant greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide, accounting for 11% of global emissions. Its heat-trapping ability is 28 times stronger than that of CO2.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), methane levels in the atmosphere have doubled due to human activities over the past two centuries. Because methane is a potent heat-trapping gas with a relatively short lifespan, reducing its emissions could significantly help prevent global warming.

The agriculture sector is a major contributor to methane emissions. Livestock produces methane through processes like belching and flatulence. Cows, as ruminants, have four stomachs, which undergo a unique digestive process to break down the brutal and coarse food they eat.

The largest chamber, the rumen, is crucial in digesting high-fibre foods like grass. In the rumen, bacteria, fungi, and protozoa help break down difficult-to-digest food and facilitate fermentation. As the grass and other vegetation ferment in the rumen, they produce methane, which the cow primarily releases through belching.

Researchers have determined that 37% of methane emissions from human activities originate from livestock and agricultural practices. A cow can produce between 154 and 264 pounds (70 to 120 kg) of methane annually. Approximately 1.5 billion cattle raised for meat worldwide emit at least 231 billion pounds of methane yearly (Agriculture, 2020).

According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), livestock emissions, including those from cows’ belching and manure, account for roughly 32% of methane emissions caused by human activities.

Vaccine to reduce methane emissions

In response to this problem, John Hammond, director of research at the UK’s Pirbright Institute, is developing a vaccine designed to reduce methane emissions from cows. This innovative approach is part of a global effort to make agricultural practices more climate-friendly.

Vaccines represent one potential solution for livestock and dairy farmers aiming to significantly reduce methane emissions, a potent greenhouse gas, in agriculture. The Pirbright Institute in the UK, a virology laboratory specialising in livestock, is leading a three-year research study to develop such a vaccine. According to Hammond, the vaccine is appealing due to its widespread acceptance and common usage in animal health.

The development of this vaccine is backed by a $9.4 million grant from the Bezos Earth Fund, the philanthropic organisation established by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos to combat climate change. The project also involves collaboration with the Royal Veterinary College in the UK and AgResearch, an agricultural innovation laboratory in New Zealand.

Once fully developed, the vaccine will be administered to calves just after birth. It aims to reduce methane emissions by at least 30%, with this reduction expected to last throughout the cow’s life.

“To work, the vaccine would need to produce antibodies that bind with the bacteria in the rumen that produce the methane and stop them from doing so,” Hammond says about the vaccine.

He notes that scientists around the world have been attempting to develop a “fart vaccine” for the past decade, but there have yet to be any tangible results. For the vaccine to succeed, several challenges need to be addressed. It must be safe for cows, effectively reduce methane emissions from livestock, and not significantly increase costs for farmers.

While vaccination is a promising method, it is just one of many strategies to reduce methane emissions. Selective breeding can improve livestock genetics, which may help lower methane production. Additionally, enzymes that break down methane at the source can enhance digestion and reduce emissions. Genetic editing techniques, such as CRISPR, could target methane-producing microbes in livestock.

Feed additives, including fats and tannins, represent some of the most advanced solutions. In trials, they demonstrated great potential for reducing methane emissions. Together, these approaches offer significant potential for mitigating methane emissions in agriculture.