The workshop in Tenjo brought together producers, technicians, and local authorities to share advances in technologies that reduce enteric methane in cattle, as part of the FONTAGRO project for more sustainable livestock farming in Latin America.
On April 23rd, the workshop “Use of feed additives in livestock farming” was held in the Multifunctional Hall of the municipality of Tenjo (Cundinamarca), within the framework of the FONTAGRO project “Innovations to reduce methane emissions in ruminants”, financed by the Government of New Zealand as part of its contribution to the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases (GRA) and executed by AGROSAVIA - Colombian Corporation for Agricultural Research in Colombia, INTA - in Argentina, with the collaboration of the University of the Andes in Colombia and the National University of Córdoba in Argentina. This project aims to reduce by 10% the emission intensity (g of CO2 Eq/kg of meat) in bovine production systems by implementing technological innovations developed in Latin America to quantify and mitigate greenhouse gases (GHG).
The event brought together 44 participants, with a significant female participation (47.7%), including livestock producers from the Colatte Cooperative, local technical assistants, and officials from the Secretariat of Economic Development and Environment of the Municipality of Tenjo. It is worth noting that the Colatte Cooperative expressed its support for the project from its formulation stage, through a letter of support demonstrating its commitment to the development of sustainable livestock farming practices in the region.
During the event, project progress was shared, including the validation of a remote sensing system for monitoring nutrient intake, the quantification of enteric methane emissions in grazing cattle, and the generation of recommendations for using a feed additive to reduce enteric methane emissions in cattle farms.
During the event, project progress was shared, focusing on:
- Validation of a remote sensing system for monitoring ingestive behavior.
- Quantification of enteric methane emissions in grazing cattle.
- Generation of recommendations for the use of a feed additive aimed at reducing enteric methane emissions in cattle farms.
Secondly, sustainable technological alternatives for nutritional management were presented, focused on improving the productive efficiency of livestock systems and contributing to GHG mitigation, especially enteric methane.
Additionally, participants completed a survey promoted by GRA1, aimed at assessing the current status of enteric methane mitigation feed additives in the industry and the future perception of the use of this technology in local livestock farms.
This is the second workshop in a series of regional activities that seek to bring scientific knowledge to the local communities and promote the adoption of innovative practices for more sustainable livestock farming in grazing systems in Latin America and the Caribbean.
To learn more about this initiative, watch the following video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZwgLmIx3YY&list=LL&index=4&t=1s
1 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).
