GHG emissions from beef production A global...

LIFE BEEF CARBON – European network meeting • Verona • 1 February 2018

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GHG emissions from beef production

A global perspective

Félix Teillard, Carolyn Opio

AGA – Animal Production and Health Division


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• Livestock provide 18% of global kcal and 34% of global

protein, beef provides 5% of global protein

• Beef is a source of essential micronutrients – vitamin B12,

riboflavin, iron, zinc

• Ruminants transform grass and by-products into human

edible food

• Livestock provide a range of services beyond food:

manure, drought power, income & livelihood, economic &

environmental

• Livestock are kept by 60% of rural household in developing

countries, including 1 billion poor, 150 million pastoralists

Livestock for food security & nutrition


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Compared to other species (total emissions)

Overview of global beef emissions

2 431 2 452

142

819 766

829

596

-

500

1 000

1 500

2 000

2 500

3 000

Beef cattle Dairy

cattle

Feedlot

cattle

Pigs Buffalo Chicken Small

ruminants

Mil

lio

n t

on

ne

sC

O2

-eq


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Compared to other species (emission intensity)



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Emissions by sources


Fertilizer & crop

residues, N2O

3,2%

Applied & deposited

manure, N2O

16,2%

Feed, CO2

6,8%

LUC: soy &

palm, CO2

1,0%

LUC: pasture

expansion, CO2

13,4%

Enteric, CH4

53,7%

Manure MMS, CH4

1,8%

Manure MMS, N2O

3,0%

Energy use, CO2

0,7%

Postfarm, CO2

0,3%

Fertilizer & crop residues,

N2O

12,3%

Applied & deposited

manure, N2O

5,5%

Feed, CO2

23,0%

LUC: soy & palm, CO2

3,0%Enteric, CH4

30,4%

Manure MMS, CH4

1,0%

Manure MMS, N2O

13,6%

Energy use, CO2

5,3%

Postfarm, CO2

5,9%

All beef Feedlot (finishing phase)


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• Growing demand for livestock products, especially in

developing countries (+200% by 2050 in Africa?)

• 92 developing countries have included livestock in

their INDCs

• COP23 Bonn: agriculture now explicitly addressed in

the negotiation process

• Countries to submit their views on improved

livestock management, soil carbon and fertility in

grassland, nutrient use and manure management

Low carbon livestock: growing recognition


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• Productivity improvements

to reduce emission

intensity

• Carbon sequestration

• Livestock integration in the

circular bio-economy

Low carbon livestock: growing recognition


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Global project to identify high potential areas of

intervention and cost-effective approaches

Reducing enteric methane emission intensity


9Reducing enteric methane emission intensity


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Reduction potential of intervention packages



11Reducing enteric methane emission intensity


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• Large potential for mitigation of methane emissions and productivity

increase

• Interventions are prioritized according to improvement potential

(mitigation and productivity) and feasibility

• Interventions involve no major changes but reducing efficiency gap and

adopting best technologies/practices between producers in the same

production system

• Numerous interventions have positive economic returns: incentive for

adoption because benefits exceed costs in the short to medium term

• Adoption requires aligning investment and spending decisions with

financing sources, and short term growth promotion with long term

strategic decisions regarding sector development

• Local experimentations is needed for technology targeting and better

understanding the role of policy and new investment mechanisms



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• Permanent pastures and meadows cover about 3.3 billion ha, one quarter of the

Earth’s land area and 68% of the agricultural area

• Grasslands are estimated to contain 343 billion tonnes of carbon and could

potentially stock more

• About 20% of grasslands are degraded

• Synergies between carbon sequestration, land restoration, vegetation

productivity and biodiversity

Soil carbon sequestration – potential & challenges

• Knowledge gaps on how management practices

can increase soil carbon: adapted timing and

intensity of grazing, pasture improvement

(fertilization, seeding), improved mobility,

sylvopastoralism

• Challenges: high spatial variability, diversity and

history of management practices, threshold,

reversibility


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• LEAP Technical Advisory Group (TAG) on soil carbon stock changes

to overcome lack of consensus on reference method and data

• Soil carbon sequestration assessment within GLEAM (Global

Livestock Environmental Assessment Model)

• Global Soil Partnership, Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils

• Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock, Restore value to

grasslands action network

• 4 per 1000 initiative

Soil carbon sequestration – initiatives


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• Livestock are important in context of climate change, as a source

of livelihood and resilience for hundreds of millions of vulnerable

people and as significant contributors to GHG emissions

• Options exist for low carbon livestock, with co-benefits for

productivity and adaptation

• The evidence base is being strengthened, with tools and methods

to measure emissions

• Investment in low carbon livestock is growing (e.g., GEF, GCF and

World Bank projects)

• Concerted action and multi-stakeholder engagement is necessary:

coordinating investment, research, interventions, voluntary

commitments and policy frameworks

• Synergies between SDGs are possible

Conclusions


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The GLEAM TEAM: Giuseppina Cinardi, Alessandra Falcucci, Juliana Lopes, Ruben Martinez-Rodriguez,

Anne Mottet, Carolyn Opio, Monica Rulli, Giuseppe Tempio, Félix Teillard, Aimable Uwizeye

Thank you

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