Molasses blocks for livestock can fight climate change reduce smallholder farmer poverty

Prof Peter Windsor Sydney School of Veterinary Science Australia

High-quality nutrient molasses block supplements for cattle & buffalo in developing countries can address rural poverty & climate change

Strategy for Improving the Production Efficiency of Cattle

Why are GHG’s from livestock important?

Mitigation of climate change, through reduction in the use of fossil fuels for energy that produce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, is a priority challenge for the survival of mankind. However, with the contribution of GHG’s from livestock generally considered to be ~16% of total emissions, their reduction from the almost one billion cattle used in food production has also become an important priority. Currently, livestock production accounts for ~40% of agricultural output in developed countries, with advanced genetics, feeding systems, animal health controls and other technologies reducing land requirements for livestock by ~20% with a doubling of meat production over the last 40yrs. However, in subsistence agricultural systems of developing countries, livestock production is only ~20% of agricultural output. This is despite many of these countries having a largely agrarian society with rapidly rising demand in urban areas for milk and meat in countries where there has historically been very limited access to these protein sources (https://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/1157729/icode).