Potential of grazing management to improve beef cattle production and mitigate methane emissions in native grasslands of the Pampa biome

We tested the hypothesis that improving sward structure through adjustments in forage allowance results in greater forage intake and live weight (LW) gains by beef cattle and lower CH4 emissions per unit LW gain and unit area in a native grassland ecosystem of the Pampa biome. The experiment was car...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Science of the total environment 2021-08, Vol.780, p.146582-146582, Article 146582
Main Authors: Cezimbra, Ian Machado, de Albuquerque Nunes, Pedro Arthur, de Souza Filho, William, Tischler, Marcelo Ritzel, Genro, Teresa Cristina Moraes, Bayer, Cimélio, Savian, Jean Víctor, Bonnet, Olivier Jean François, Soussana, Jean-François, de Faccio Carvalho, Paulo César
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Climate change
Environmental Sciences
Global Changes
Grazing intensity
Greenhouse gases
Livestock
Ruminant
Sustainability
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Summary:We tested the hypothesis that improving sward structure through adjustments in forage allowance results in greater forage intake and live weight (LW) gains by beef cattle and lower CH4 emissions per unit LW gain and unit area in a native grassland ecosystem of the Pampa biome. The experiment was carried out during 2012 and 2013 in southern Brazil. The experimental design was a randomized complete block with two replicates. Treatments consisted of five contrasting forage allowances of a native grassland managed under continuous stocking: 4, 8, 8–12, 12, and 16 kg of dry matter (DM) 100 kg LW−1 day−1 (or % LW). The 8–12% LW treatment had a variable forage allowance of 8% LW in spring and 12% LW in summer, autumn, and winter. Forage allowance was controlled by changes in stocking rate (kg LW ha−1). Average daily gain (kg LW day−1) was high for forage allowances of 12 and 16% LW but decreased at 8%, reaching the lowest value at 4% LW treatment (p 
ISSN:0048-9697
1879-1026
DOI:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146582