Milk analysis to predict methane emission of dairy cows

Methane is both a product of digestion in cattle and a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. Unfortunately, on-farm methane quantification is not feasible on a large scale using animal-direct measurements. Scientists Engelke et al. developed a tool predicting methane emission of dairy cows from both the fatty acid concentrations in the milk and the milk yield. This prediction could be used as a screening method in the genetic selection of low methane-emitting cows.