This 395-paged-book aims to raise awareness among scientists, academics, students, livestock farmers and policy makers of the twin inter-related and inter-dependent complex mechanisms of livestock rearing and climate change. The contents are divided into sections: one on livestock production, one...

The greenhouse gases (GHGs) attributed to agriculture and animal agriculture are methane (CH₄) and nitrous oxide (N₂O). The relative absorptivity of the infrared radiation of carbon dioxide (CO₂) is about 21-fold and 310-fold higher than for each molecule of CH₄ or N₂O, respectively. As the...

The livestock sector accounts for 40% of the world's agriculture gross domestic product (GDP). It employs 1.3 billion people and creates livelihoods for 1 billion of the population living in poverty. Climate change is seen as a major threat to the survival of many species and ecosystems, and the...

Livestock manure traditionally has been considered and used as a valuable resource by farmers to improve crop production. Livestock manure is rich in nutrients (nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P)) and thus has been land applied to enrich soils. But land application of manure nutrients in excess of...

The mechanisms involved in the digestive process of the rumen are complex, and are accomplished by a diverse and dynamic group of microbes. Microbial diversity in the rumen has been predicted to enhance the resistance of the network of metabolic pathways by increasing the number of genes encoding...

The degradation of plant cell walls by ruminants is of major economic importance in the developed as well as the developing world. Rumen fermentation and degradation of cell wall relies on the cooperation between the microorganisms that produce fibrolytic enzymes and the host animal, which provides ...

Animal production contributes substantially to global greenhouse gas emissions (about 14.5%). So-called carbon footprints (CFs) consider the greenhouse gas potential of climate-relevant gases (e.g. CO₂ × 1; CH₄ × 23; N₂O × 296), which is given in carbon dioxide (CO₂)-equivalent g^-1 or kg^-1 of...

The effect of changing climate will not only be confined to limited production, and the productivity of agricultural commodities, but will also have far-reaching consequences on dairy, meat, wool and other animal products. The impact of climate change on the livestock sector as a whole will be felt ...

CH₄ emissions occur directly from animal digestion (enteric) and from animal waste that is stored under anaerobic conditions. In both regards, CH₄ emissions depends on kinetic and thermodynamic factors. With kinetic control, the profile of products formed depends on the relative rates of the...

Ruminal fermentation is an inherently inefficient process converting up to 12% of dietary carbon and energy into end products (e.g. CH₄) that are largely unusable by the animal. Ruminant nutritionists seek to modify fermentation, specifically by increasing ruminal propionic acid yield, reducing...