Daily methane emissions and yields in dairy cows are predicted from methane to carbon dioxide ratio in breath

摘要

Enteric methane emissions from ruminant animals and their contribution to greenhouse gases are responsible for global warming. There are a number of direct methods (respiration chambers, SF6, C-Lock system) for measuring enteric methane emissions, butthese either involve expensive equipment or are technically challenging. Recently, Madsen et al., (2010) proposed that the methane:carbon dioxide ratio (CH4/CO2) in exhaled breath could be used to quantify methane emissions from ruminants. The aim of the current research was to assess the potential of this technique using data from a large number of dairy cows fed on a wide range of diets.