Producers in the Magdalena Medio region welcome additives to reduce emissions, but face economic, technical, and access barriers that limit their adoption in beef and dual-purpose livestock systems.
Within the framework of the 1st International Congress on Ruminant Production in the Tropics (CONRUMINT), held in Villavicencio, Colombia, by the University of Los Llanos, the AGROSAVIA team presented the preliminary results of the study: "Perceptions of the Use of Additives for Climate Change Mitigation in Livestock Farms in the Middle Magdalena Region of Antioquia."
For this assessment, the team implemented a 10-question data capture format, adapted from the evaluation of emerging additives (Hegarty et al., 2021), proposed by the New Zealand Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Research Center (NZAGRC) within the framework of the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases (GRA). The sample included 20 producers and 8 technical assistants, belonging to dual-purpose or meat systems in the municipalities of San Roque, Caracolí, Maceo, and Puerto Berrío in Antioquia, Colombia.
This research is being conducted within the context of the FONTAGRO initiative: "Innovations to Reduce Methane Emissions in Ruminants," funded by the Government of New Zealand as part of its contribution to the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases (GRA). The project is being implemented by the regional platform, comprised of AGROSAVIA (Colombia), INTA (Argentina), Universidad de los Andes (Colombia), and Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (Argentina).
The results presented demonstrate a growing awareness among producers about climate change and a positive perception of the use of feed additives as a greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation strategy. However, significant barriers to their adoption were also identified, such as a lack of economic incentives, a lack of technical knowledge, and the low commercial availability of these products in Colombia.
The key findings presented include:
Participants expressed a moderate willingness to pay (between 5 and 10%) for additives that reduce GHG emissions in their livestock production systems.
Producers recognize the importance of managing GHG emissions, especially in the medium and long term (5 to 10 years).
The most frequently mentioned limitations to commercialization include a lack of technical information, high costs, and limited local supply.
Emphasis was placed on the need to implement technical training programs and promote public policies that facilitate the adoption of sustainable technologies in livestock production systems, especially by small and medium-sized producers.
To learn more about this initiative, access the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZwgLmIx3YY&list=LL&index=4&t=1s
Hegarty RS, Cortez Passetti RA, Dittmer KM, Wang Y, Shelton S, Emmet-Booth J, Wollenberg E, McAllister T, Leahy S, Beauchemin K, Gurwick N. 2021. An evaluation of emerging feed additives to reduce methane emissions from livestock. Edition 1. A report coordinated by Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) and the New Zealand Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Research Centre (NZAGRC) initiative of the Global Research Alliance (GRA).
