Body fat mobilization in early lactation influences methane production of dairy cows

Many studies have shown strong positive correlations between feed intake and methane emission in dairy cows but the residual variance can barely be explained. Recent studies have shown that apart from the genetic background the fat metabolism of the host may affect methane emission. We aimed to investigate the influence of fat mobilization in early lactation of dairy cows on ruminal fermentation and methane emission. To this end we studied a group of twenty first lactating dairy cows with different extent of fat mobilization in early lactation, but receiving the same total mixed ration composition during the whole lactation period in regard to their methane yield and passage rate. We were able to show that fat mobilization reduces methane yield and provided some mechanistic hints explaining this phenomenon.

More info on paper: http://www.nature.com/articles/srep28135

More info on author: Anita Bielak