Carbon Footprint Assessment of Spanish Dairy Cattle Farms: Effectiveness of Dietary and Farm Management Practices as a Mitigation Strategy

• Published in: Animals (Basel) Vol. 10; no. 11; p. 2083
• Main Authors: Ibidhi, Ridha, Calsamiglia, Sergio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 01.11.2020; MDPI
• Subjects: Agricultural policy; Agricultural practices; Agricultural production; Agricultural sciences; Air quality management; Animal production studies; Bedding; Carbohydrates; Carbon dioxide; Carbon footprint; Climate change; Dairy cattle; dairy farm; Dairy farming; Dairy farms; Diet; Ecological footprint; Ecology, environment; Emissions; Environment; Environmental aspects; Evaluation; Farm management; Feeds; Footprint analysis; Greenhouse effect; greenhouse gas; Greenhouse gases; Ionophores; Life Sciences; Livestock; Livestock industry; Livestock production; Manures; Methane; Milk; Milk production; Mitigation; Proteins; Questionnaires; Simulation; Spain; Methane; Dairy farm; Greenhouse gas > Climatology; Carbon footprint
• ISSN: 2076-2615; 2076-2615
• DOI: 10.3390/ani10112083

Greenhouse gas emissions and the carbon footprint (CF) were estimated in twelve Spanish dairy farms selected from three regions (Mediterranean, MED; Cantabric, CAN; and Central, CEN) using a partial life cycle assessment through the Integrated Farm System Model (IFSM). The functional unit was 1 kg of energy corrected milk (ECM). Methane emissions accounted for the largest contribution to the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The average CF (kg CO2-eq/kg of ECM) was 0.84, being the highest in MED (0.98), intermediate in CEN (0.84), and the lowest in CAN (0.67). Two extreme farms were selected for further simulations: one with the highest non-enteric methane (MED1), and another with the highest enteric methane (CAN2). Changes in management scenarios (increase milk production, change manure collection systems, change manure-type storage method, change bedding type and installation of an anaerobic digester) in MED1 were evaluated with the IFSM model. Changes in feeding strategies (reduce the forage: concentrate ratio, improve forage quality, use of ionophores) in CAN2 were evaluated with the Cornell Net Carbohydrate and Protein System model. Results indicate that changes in management (up to 27.5% reduction) were more efficient than changes in dietary practices (up to 3.5% reduction) in reducing the carbon footprint.