Nitrogen in global animal production and management options for improving nitrogen use efficiency

Animal production systems convert plant protein into animal protein. Depending on animal species, ration and management, between 5% and 45 % of the nitrogen (N) in plant protein is converted to and deposited in animal protein. The other 55%-95% is excreted via urine and feces, and can be used as nutrient source for plant (= often animal feed) production. The estimated global amount of N voided by animals ranges between 80 and 130 Tg N per year, and is as large as or larger than the global annual N fertilizer consumption. Cattle (60%), sheep (12%) and pigs (6%) have the largest share in animal manure N production. The conversion of plant N into animal N is on average more efficient in poultry and pork production than in dairy production, which is higher than in beef and sheep production. However, differences within a type of animal production system can be as large as differences between types of animal production systems, due to large effects of the genetic potential of animals, animal feed and management. The management of animals and animal feed, together with the genetic potential of the animals, are key factors to a high efficiency of conversion of plant protein into animal protein. The efficiency of the conversion of N from animal manure, following application to land, into plant protein ranges between 0 and 60%, while the estimated global mean is about 15%. The other 40%-100% is lost to the wider environment via NH3 volatilization, denitrification, leaching and run-off in pastures or during storage and/or following application of the animal manure to land. On a global scale, only 40%-50% of the amount of N voided is collected in barns, stables and paddocks, and only half of this amount is recycled to crop land. The N losses from animal manure collected in barns, stables and paddocks depend on the animal manure management system. Relative large losses occur in confined animal feeding operations, as these often lack the land base to utilize the N from animal manure effectively. Losses will be relatively low when all manure are collected rapidly in water-tight and covered basins, and when they are subsequently applied to the land in proper amounts and at the proper time, and using the proper method (low-emission techniques). There is opportunity for improving the N conversion in animal production systems by improving the genetic production potential of the herd, the composition of the animal feed, and the management of the animal manure. Coupling of crop and animal production systems, at least at a regional scale, is one way to high N use efficiency in the whole system. Clustering of confined animal production systems with other intensive agricultural production systems on the basis of concepts from industrial ecology with manure processing is another possible way to improve N use efficiency.     

Nitrogen in global animal production and management options for improving nitrogen use efficiency

Animal production systems convert plant protein into animal protein. Depending on animal species, ration and management, between 5% and 45 % of the nitrogen (N) in plant protein is converted to and deposited in animal protein. The other 55%-95% is excreted via urine and feces, and can be used as nutrient source for plant (= often animal feed) production. The estimated global amount of N voided by animals ranges between 80 and 130 Tg N per year, and is as large as or larger than the global annual N fertilizer consumption. Cattle (60%), sheep (12%) and pigs (6%) have the largest share in animal manure N production.The conversion of plant N into animal N is on average more efficient in poultry and pork production than in dairy production, which is higher than in beef and sheep production. However, differences within a type of animal production system can be as large as differences between types of animal production systems, due to large effects of the genetic potential of animals, animal feed and management. The management of animals and animal feed, together with the genetic potential of the animals, are key factors to a high efficiency of conversion of plant protein into animal protein.The efficiency of the conversion of N from animal manure, following application to land, into plant protein ranges between 0 and 60%, while the estimated global mean is about 15%. The other 40%- 100% is lost to the wider environment via NH3 volatilization, denitrification, leaching and run-off in pastures or during storage and/or following application of the animal manure to land. On a global scale, only 40%-50% of the amount of N voided is collected in barns, stables and paddocks, and only half of this amount is recycled to crop land. The N losses from animal manure collected in barns, stables and paddocks depend on the animal manure management system. Relative large losses occur in confined animal feeding operations, as these often lack the land base to utilize the N from animal manure effectively.Losses will be relatively low when all manure are collected rapidly in water-tight and covered basins, and when they are subsequently applied to the land in proper amounts and at the proper time, and using the proper method (low-emission techniques).There is opportunity for improving the N conversion in animal production systems by improving the genetic production potential of the herd, the composition of the animal feed, and the management of the animal manure. Coupling of crop and animal production systems, at least at a regional scale, is one way to high N use efficiency in the whole system. Clustering of confined animal production systems with other intensive agricultural production systems on the basis of concepts from industrial ecology with manure processing is another possible way to improve Nuse efficiency.     

Mitigating climate change: the role of domestic livestock

Livestock contribute directly (i.e. as methane and nitrous oxide (N2O)) to about 9% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and around 3% of UK emissions. If all parts of the livestock production lifecycle are included (fossil fuels used to produce mineral fertilizers used in feed production and N2O emissions from fertilizer use; methane release from the breakdown of fertilizers and from animal manure; land-use changes for feed production and for grazing; land degradation; fossil fuel use during feed and animal production; fossil fuel use in production and transport of processed and refrigerated animal products), livestock are estimated to account for 18% of global anthropogenic emissions, but less than 8% in the UK. In terms of GHG emissions per unit of livestock product, monogastric livestock are more efficient than ruminants; thus in the UK, while sheep and cattle accounted for 32% of meat production in 2006, they accounted for 48% of GHG emissions associated with meat production. More efficient management of grazing lands and of manure can have a direct impact in decreasing emissions. Improving efficiency of livestock production through better breeding, health interventions or improving fertility can also decrease GHG emissions through decreasing the number of livestock required per unit product. Increasing the energy density of the diet has a dual effect, decreasing both direct emissions and the numbers of livestock per unit product, but, as the demands for food increase in response to increasing human population and a better diet in some developing countries, there is increasing competition for land for food v. energy-dense feed crops. Recalculating efficiencies of energy and protein production on the basis of human-edible food produced per unit of human-edible feed consumed gave higher efficiencies for ruminants than for monogastric animals. The policy community thus have difficult decisions to make in balancing the negative contribution of livestock to the environment against the positive benefit in terms of food security. The animal science community have a responsibility to provide an evidence base which is objective and holistic with respect to these two competing challenges.     

Review: Insect meal: a future source of protein feed for pigs?

Are insects the farm animal of the future? A key agenda for agricultural production systems is the development of sustainable practices whereby food and feed can be produced in an environmentally efficient manner. These goals require novel approaches to complex problems and demand collaboration between scientists, producers, consumers, government and the general population. The provision of feed for animals is a major contributor to land and water use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Further, overfishing and a reduction in available land and water resources on which crops can be grown has led to an increase in price of protein ingredients such as fish meals and oils and soybean meals. Determination of novel solutions to meet the feed protein requirements of production animals is key to the development of sustainable farming practices. The Australian pork industry aims to develop production systems that efficiently use available resources (such as feed and energy) and limit the production of emissions (such as manure waste and GHGs). Invertebrates (insects e.g. black soldier flies) are naturally consumed by monogastric and aquatic species, yet the large-scale production of insects for feed (or food) is yet to be exploited. Most insects are low producers of GHGs and have low land and water requirements. The large-scale production of insects can contribute to a circular economy whereby food and feed waste (and potentially manure) are reduced or ideally eliminated via bioconversion. While the concept of farm-scale production of insects as domestic animal feed has been explored for decades, significant production and replacement of traditional protein sources has yet to be achieved. This review will focus on the potential role of insect-derived protein as a feed source for the Australian pig production industry.     

Simulation of Long-Term Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics in Grassland-Based Dairy Farming Systems to Evaluate Mitigation Strategies for Nutrient Losses

Many measures have been proposed to mitigate gaseous emissions and other nutrient losses from agroecosystems, which can have large detrimental effects for the quality of soils, water and air, and contribute to eutrophication and global warming. Due to complexities in farm management, biological interactions and emission measurements, most experiments focus on analysis of short-term effects of isolated mitigation practices. Here we present a model that allows simulating long-term effects at the whole-farm level of combined measures related to grassland management, animal housing and manure handling after excretion, during storage and after field application. The model describes the dynamics of pools of organic carbon and nitrogen (N), and of inorganic N, as affected by farm management in grassland-based dairy systems. We assessed the long-term effects of delayed grass mowing, housing type (cubicle and sloping floor barns, resulting in production of slurry and solid cattle manure, respectively), manure additives, contrasting manure storage methods and irrigation after application of covered manure. Simulations demonstrated that individually applied practices often result in compensatory loss pathways. For instance, methods to reduce ammonia emissions during storage like roofing or covering of manure led to larger losses through ammonia volatilization, nitrate leaching or denitrification after application, unless extra measures like irrigation were used. A strategy of combined management practices of delayed mowing and fertilization with solid cattle manure that is treated with zeolite, stored under an impermeable sheet and irrigated after application was effective to increase soil carbon stocks, increase feed self-sufficiency and reduce losses by ammonia volatilization and soil N losses. Although long-term datasets (>25 years) of farm nutrient dynamics and loss flows are not available to validate the model, the model is firmly based on knowledge of processes and measured effects of individual practices, and allows the integrated exploration of effective emission mitigation strategies.     

Review: Feed demand landscape and implications of food-not feed strategy for food security and climate change

The food-feed competition is one of the complex challenges, and so are the ongoing climate change, land degradation and water shortage for realizing sustainable food production systems. By 2050 the global demand for animal products is projected to increase by 60% to 70%, and developing countries will have a lion’s share in this increase. Currently, ~800 million tonnes of cereals (one-third of total cereal production) are used in animal feed and by 2050 it is projected to be over 1.1 billion tonnes. Most of the increase in feed demand will be in developing countries, which already face many food security challenges. Additional feed required for the projected increased demand of animal products, if met through food grains, will further exacerbate the food insecurity in these countries. Furthermore, globally, the production, processing and transport of feed account for 45% of the greenhouse gas emissions from the livestock sector. This paper presents approaches for addressing these challenges in quest for making livestock sector more sustainable. The use of novel human-inedible feed resources such as insect meals, leaf meals, protein isolates, single cell protein produced using waste streams, protein hydrolysates, spineless cactus, algae, co-products of the biofuel industry, food wastes among others, has enormous prospects. Efficient use of grasslands also offers possibilities for increasing carbon sequestration, land reclamation and livestock productivity. Opportunities also exist for decreasing feed wastages by simple and well proven practices such as use of appropriate troughs, increase in efficiency of harvesting crop residues and their conversion to complete feeds especially in the form of densified feed blocks or pellets, feeding as per the nutrient requirements, among others. Available evidence have been presented to substantiate arguments that: (a) for successful and sustained adoption of a feed technology, participation of the private sector and a sound business plan are required, (b) for sustainability of the livestock production systems, it is also important to consider the consumption of animal products and a case has been presented to assess future needs of animal source foods based on their requirements for healthy living, (c) for dairy animals, calculation of Emission Intensity based on the lifetime lactation rather than one lactation may also be considered and (d) for assessment of the efficiency of livestock production systems a holistic approach is required that takes into consideration social dimensions and net human-edible protein output from the system in addition to carbon and water footprints.     

Review: Pork production with maximal nitrogen efficiency

During growth, pigs convert plant protein into animal protein. The major part of the ingested protein is excreted via manure, with potential nitrogen (N) losses to the environment. To limit N losses and increase sustainability of pork production, the efficiency of protein conversion should be maximized. The aim of this paper is to critically evaluate diet and management strategies linked with N efficiency. Besides nutrition, we discuss three management strategies observed in science and in practice to be linked with improved N efficiency: genetic selection, castration and slaughter weight. Because diet has a marked effect on eventual N losses, it must also be taken into account when evaluating management strategies. A reductionist approach, such as feeding the same diet across all management treatments, may overestimate the effect of a management strategy and eventually lead to incorrect conclusions. The amount of excreted N depends on the amount of ingested N, the amount of absorbed N, the amino acid (AA) balance in the diet and the animal’s N and AA requirements. Daily multiphase feeding adapted to the individual animal’s AA needs is likely to be the most N efficient. For animals housed in groups, phase feeding is necessary. When combined with periods of temporary AA restriction, N efficiency can be further improved. Specific AA consumption must be balanced by applying the ideal protein concept. With better knowledge of the requirements of individual animals and the commercial availability of certain AAs, the total dietary CP level can be lowered within limits. Further research is needed on the minimal CP level that allows maximal performance. For this end a useful parameter may be the ratio of standardized ileal digestible (SID) lysine : apparent total tract digestible CP level. By combining optimal nutrition and management, a whole body N efficiency approaching 60% may be achievable in the near future.     

Recovery of dairy manure nutrients by benthic freshwater algae

Harnessing solar energy to grow algal biomass on wastewater nutrients could provide a holistic solution to nutrient management problems on dairy farms. The production of algae from a portion of manure nutrients to replace high-protein feed supplements which are often imported (along with considerable nutrients) onto the farm could potentially link consumption and supply of on-farm nutrients. The objective of this research was to assess the ability of benthic freshwater algae to recover nutrients from dairy manure and to evaluate nutrient uptake rates and dry matter/crude protein yields in comparison to a conventional cropping system. Benthic algae growth chambers were operated in semi-batch mode by continuously recycling wastewater and adding manure inputs daily. Using total nitrogen (TN) loading rates of 0.64-1.03 g m(-2) d(-1), the dried algal yields were 5.3-5.5 g m(-2) d(-1). The dried algae contained 1.5-2.1% P and 4.9-7.1% N. At a TN loading rate of 1.03 g m(-2) d(-1), algal biomass contained 7.1% N compared to only 4.9% N at a TN loading rate of 0.64 g m(-2) d(-1). In the best case, algal biomass had a crude protein content of 44%, compared to a typical corn silage protein content of 7%. At a dry matter yield of 5.5 g m(-2) d(-1), this is equivalent to an annual N uptake rate of 1,430 kg ha(-1) yr(-1). Compared to a conventional corn/rye rotation, such benthic algae production rates would require 26% of the land area requirements for equivalent N uptake rates and 23% of the land area requirements on a P uptake basis. Combining conventional cropping systems with an algal treatment system could facilitate more efficient crop production and farm nutrient management, allowing dairy operations to be environmentally sustainable on fewer acres.     

The importance of grasslands for animal production and other functions: a review on management and methodological progress in the tropics

The global importance of grasslands is indicated by their extent; they comprise some 26% of total land area and 80% of agriculturally productive land. The majority of grasslands are located in tropical developing countries where they are particularly important to the livelihoods of some one billion poor peoples. Grasslands clearly provide the feed base for grazing livestock and thus numerous high-quality foods, but such livestock also provide products such as fertilizer, transport, traction, fibre and leather. In addition, grasslands provide important services and roles including as water catchments, biodiversity reserves, for cultural and recreational needs, and potentially a carbon sink to alleviate greenhouse gas emissions. Inevitably, such functions may conflict with management for production of livestock products. Much of the increasing global demand for meat and milk, particularly from developing countries, will have to be supplied from grassland ecosystems, and this will provide difficult challenges. Increased production of meat and milk generally requires increased intake of metabolizable energy, and thus increased voluntary intake and/or digestibility of diets selected by grazing animals. These will require more widespread and effective application of improved management. Strategies to improve productivity include fertilizer application, grazing management, greater use of crop by-products, legumes and supplements and manipulation of stocking rate and herbage allowance. However, it is often difficult to predict the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of such strategies, particularly in tropical developing country production systems. Evaluation and on-going adjustment of grazing systems require appropriate and reliable assessment criteria, but these are often lacking. A number of emerging technologies may contribute to timely low-cost acquisition of quantitative information to better understand the soil-pasture-animal interactions and animal management in grassland systems. Development of remote imaging of vegetation, global positioning technology, improved diet markers, near IR spectroscopy and modelling provide improved tools for knowledge-based decisions on the productivity constraints of grazing animals. Individual electronic identification of animals offers opportunities for precision management on an individual animal basis for improved productivity. Improved outcomes in the form of livestock products, services and/or other outcomes from grasslands should be possible, but clearly a diversity of solutions are needed for the vast range of environments and social circumstances of global grasslands.     

Stratification of solids,nitrogen and phosphorus in swine manure in deep pits under slatted floors

Manure slurries stored in pits under slatted floors of both finishing and nursery barns were sampled at four different depths to study stratifications of total solids (TS) and nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus), and to determine the relationship between the stratification of TS and nutrients. The results obtained can be used to improve the management and handling of swine manure in the under-slat storage pits. A management scheme that can be adopted for both the finishing and the nursery barns' pits is the layer-by-layer harvesting of the manure. The thinner manure, which is lower in nutrients, can be spread on land near the production units in larger volumes or it may pumped to land remote from the production units without causing many clogging problems. The thicker manure, higher in nutrients, can be transported to land further away and spread in smaller volumes. The TS content of each stratum can be used to accurately estimate the nitrogen and phosphorus levels in the respective strata so that application rates can easily be adjusted accordingly during the time of land application.     

A Global Assessment of the Water Footprint of Farm Animal Products

The increase in the consumption of animal products is likely to put further pressure on the world’s freshwater resources. This paper provides a comprehensive account of the water footprint of animal products, considering different production systems and feed composition per animal type and country. Nearly one-third of the total water footprint of agriculture in the world is related to the production of animal products. The water footprint of any animal product is larger than the water footprint of crop products with equivalent nutritional value. The average water footprint per calorie for beef is 20 times larger than for cereals and starchy roots. The water footprint per gram of protein for milk, eggs and chicken meat is 1.5 times larger than for pulses. The unfavorable feed conversion efficiency for animal products is largely responsible for the relatively large water footprint of animal products compared to the crop products. Animal products from industrial systems generally consume and pollute more ground- and surface-water resources than animal products from grazing or mixed systems. The rising global meat consumption and the intensification of animal production systems will put further pressure on the global freshwater resources in the coming decades. The study shows that from a freshwater perspective, animal products from grazing systems have a smaller blue and grey water footprint than products from industrial systems, and that it is more water-efficient to obtain calories, protein and fat through crop products than animal products.     

Determinations of feed–milk–manure relationships on grazing-based dairy farms

Feed conversion into milk, nutrient excretion in manure and subsequent environment impacts of manure management are highly influenced by the diets that farmers feed their lactating cows (Bos taurus). On confinement-based dairy farms, determinations of diet composition are relatively straightforward because the types, amounts and nutrients contained in stored feeds are often well known. However, on grazing-based dairy farms, diet composition is more difficult to determine because forage intake during grazing must be estimated. The objectives of this study were to determine relationships between (1) feed N intake (NI), milk production, milk urea N (MUN), feed N use efficiency (FNUE) and excreted manure N (ExN); and (2) between feed P intake (PI), dung P concentrations (g/kg dry matter (DM)) and excreted manure P (ExP) for grazing-based lactating cows having a very wide range of diets and milk production. An additional objective was to evaluate how well these relationships compare with similar relationships based on more direct measurement of feed–milk–manure on confinement-based dairy farms. Four dairy farms located in southeastern Australia were visited during autumn and spring, and data were collected on feed, milk and dung of 18 cows on each farm. Estimated dry matter intake (DMI) from pasture comprised 12% to 75% of total diet DMI, and the crude protein (CP) concentrations in the total diets ranged from 167 to 248 g/kg. During spring, as diet CP increased FNUE declined. Total diet DMI and NI provided the best predictors of ExN, and PI provided the most accurate prediction of ExP. These results indicated accuracy in the study's indirect estimates of pasture DMI. Likely due to high levels and great variability in dietary CP and P concentrations associated with use of diet supplements, MUN did not appear to be a good indicator of dietary CP, and P in dung was not a good indicator of dietary P.     

京郊典型集约化"农田-畜牧"生产系统氮素流动特征

城郊畜牧业的集约化发展在满足人们日益增长的肉蛋奶等动物性产品需求的同时,也带来了巨大的环境压力。本文利用养分流动和模型分析的方法,分析北京市郊区某村三种不同类型"农田-畜牧"生产系统(大型集约化种猪场、种养结合小规模生态养殖园和集约化单一种植区)的氮素流动特征。结果表明:饲料是集约化种猪场和生态养殖园氮素输入的主要来源,饲料投入氮量分别为12469.0和9268.5 kg.hm-.2a-1);集约化种猪场农牧体系间生产脱节,致使农田氮素输入主要依赖于化肥投入,化肥氮输入量(435.0 kg.hm-.2a-1)占农田氮素输入量的82.7%。相反,生态养殖园农牧体系结合紧密,猪粪尿氮还田比例达28.6%,这使得园区化肥氮输入量仅为135.0 kg.hm-.2a-1,因此畜禽粪尿的合理循环利用可作为减少化肥投入的有效途径;集约化种猪场、生态养殖园和单一种植区农牧生产系统氮素利用效率分别为18.8%、20.6%和17.3%,均处于较低水平;集约化种猪场猪粪尿在猪舍和储藏处理过程的氮素损失率为15.8%和25.4%,分别低于小规模生态养殖园相应损失率约8.7和4.8个百分点;生态养殖园粪肥氮还田量高,导致农田氮素盈余量高达1962.8 kg.hm-.2a-1,未能实现生态型养殖的理想效果,优化氮素管理、确定合理的消纳畜禽粪尿的农田面积和调整畜禽养殖密度是解决该问题的关键。     

Review: Use of human-edible animal feeds by ruminant livestock

The drive to increase the output of animal product in some sectors of ruminant livestock production has led to greater use of feeds such as cereal grains and soyabean meal that are potentially human-edible. This trend has caused concern since, by so doing, ruminants compete not only with monogastric livestock but also with the human population for a limited global area of cultivatable land on which to produce grain crops. Reasons for using potentially human-edible feeds in ruminant diets include increased total daily energy intake, greater supply of essential amino acids and improved ruminal balance between fermentable energy and degradable protein. Soyabean meal, produced on land that has been in arable cultivation for many years can fulfil a useful role as a supplier of undegraded dietary protein in diets for high-yielding dairy cows. However, in the context of sustaining the production of high-quality foods from livestock to meet the demands of a growing human population, the use of potentially human-edible feed resources by livestock should be restricted to livestock with the highest daily nutrient requirements; that is, potentially human-edible feed inputs should be constrained to meeting requirements for energy and protein and to rectifying imbalances in nutrient supply from pastures and forage crops such as high concentrations of nitrogen (N). There is therefore a role for human-edible feeds in milk production because forage-only systems are associated with relatively low output per head and also low N use efficiency compared with systems with greater reliance on human-edible feeds. Profitability on farm is driven by control of input costs as well as product value and examples are given of low-cost bovine milk and meat production with little or no reliance on potentially human-edible feeds. In beef production, the forage-only systems currently under detailed real-time life-cycle analysis at the North Wyke Farm Platform, can sustain high levels of animal growth at low feed cost. The potential of all-forage diets should be demonstrated for a wide range of ruminant milk and meat production systems. The challenge for the future development of ruminant systems is to ensure that potentially human-edible feeds, or preferably human-inedible by-products if available locally, are used to complement pastures and forage crops strategically rather than replace them.     

Localising livestock protein feed production and the impact on land use and greenhouse gas emissions

Livestock farmers in Sweden usually grow feed grains for livestock but import protein feed from outside Sweden. Aside from the economic implications, some environmental issues are associated with this practice. We used life cycle assessment to evaluate the impact of local protein feed production on land use and greenhouse gas emissions, compared with the use of imported protein feed, for pig meat and dairy milk produced in Sweden. Our results showed that local production reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 4.5% and 12%, respectively, for pigs and dairy cows. Land use for feed production in Sweden increased by 11% for pigs and 25% for dairy cows, but total land use decreased for pig production and increased for dairy milk production. Increased protein feed cultivation in Sweden decreased inputs needed for animal production and improved some ecological processes (e.g. nutrient recycling) of the farm systems. However, the differences in results between scenarios are relatively small and influenced to an extent by methodological choices such as co-product allocation. Moreover, it was difficult to assess the contribution of greenhouse emissions from land use change. The available accounting methods we applied did not adequately account for the potential land use changes and in some cases provided conflicting results. We conclude that local protein feed production presents an opportunity to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but at a cost of increasing land occupation in Sweden for feed production.     

Animal board invited review: Specialising and intensifying cattle production for better efficiency and less global warming: contrasting results for milk and meat co-production at different scales

Cattle are the world’s largest consumers of plant biomass. Digestion of this biomass by ruminants generates high methane emissions that affect global warming. In the last decades, the specialisation of cattle breeds and livestock systems towards either milk or meat has increased the milk production of dairy cows and the carcass weight of slaughtered cattle. At the animal level and farm level, improved animal performance decreases feed use and greenhouse gas emissions per kg of milk or carcass weight, mainly through a dilution of maintenance requirements per unit of product. However, increasing milk production per dairy cow reduces meat production from the dairy sector, as there are fewer dairy cows. More beef cows are then required if one wants to maintain the same meat production level at country scale. Meat produced from the dairy herd has a better feed efficiency (less feed required per kg of carcass weight) and emits less methane than the meat produced by the cow-calf systems, because the intake of lactating cows is largely for milk production and marginally for meat, whereas the intake of beef cows is entirely for meat. Consequently, the benefits of breed specialisation assessed at the animal level and farm level may not hold when milk and meat productions are considered together. Any change in the milk-to-meat production ratio at the country level affects the numbers of beef cows required to produce meat. At the world scale, a broad diversity in feed efficiencies of cattle products is observed. Where both productions of milk per dairy cow and meat per head of cattle are low, the relationship between milk and meat efficiencies is positive. Improved management practices (feed, reproduction, health) increase the feed efficiency of both products. Where milk and meat productivities are high, a trade-off between feed efficiencies of milk and meat can be observed in relation to the share of meat produced in either the dairy sector or the beef sector. As a result, in developing countries, increasing productivities of both dairy and beef cattle herds will increase milk and meat efficiencies, reduce land use and decrease methane emissions. In other regions of the world, increasing meat production from young animals produced by dairy cows is probably a better option to reduce feed use for an unchanged milk-to-meat production ratio.     

Saving land to feed a growing population: consequences for consumption of crop and livestock products

Purpose

The expected increase in demand for food raises concerns about the expansion of agricultural land worldwide. To avoid expansion, we need to focus on increasing land productivity, reducing waste, and shifting human diets. Studies exploring diet shifts so far have ignored competition for land between humans and animals. Our objective was to study the relation between land use, the share of animal protein in the human diet, population size, and land availability and quality.

Methods

We used linear programming to determine minimum land required to feed a population a diet with 0–80 % of the protein derived from terrestrial domestic animals. Populations ranged from 15 million to the maximum number of people that could be supported by the system. The agricultural system in the Netherlands was used as illustration, assuming no import and export of feed and food. Daily energy and protein requirements of humans were fulfilled by a diet potentially consisting of grain (wheat), root and tuber crops (potato, sugar beet), oil crops (rapeseed), legumes (brown bean), and animal protein from ruminants (milk and meat) and monogastrics (pork).

Results and discussion

Land is used most efficiently if people would derive 12 % of dietary protein from animals (% PA), especially milk. The role of animals in such a diet is to convert co-products from crop production and the human food industry into protein-rich milk and meat. Below 12 % PA, human-inedible products were wasted (i.e., not used for food production), whereas above 12 % PA, additional crops had to be cultivated to feed livestock. Large populations (40 million or more) could be sustained only if animal protein was consumed. This results from the fact that at high population sizes, land unsuitable for crop production was necessary to meet dietary requirements of the population, and contributed to food production by providing animal protein without competing for land with crops.

Conclusions

A land use optimization model including crop and animal production enables identification of the optimal % PA in the diet. Land use per capita was lowest at 12 % PA. At this level, animals optimally consume co-products from food production. Larger populations, furthermore, can be sustained only with diets relatively high in % PA, as land unsuitable for crop production is needed to fulfil their food demand. The optimal % PA in the human diet depended on population size and the relative share of land unsuitable for crop production.

     

Influence of diet and manure management on ammonia and greenhouse gas emissions from dairy barns

Dairy systems are a source of pollutant emissions, such as greenhouse gases (GHG) and NH₃ that are associated with impacts on the environment. Gas emissions in barns are related mainly to diet intake and chemical composition, N excretion and manure management. A reduction in dietary N is known to be an effective way to reduce N excretion and the resulting NH₃ emissions. However, most studies consider manure in liquid form with frequent removal from the barn. In deep litter systems, several processes can occur during the accumulation of solid manure that result in variable gas emissions. The objective of this experiment was to investigate the influence of the interaction between dietary CP (low or high) and manure management (liquid or solid) on gas emissions (NH₃, N₂O, CH₄) at the barn level. Dietary treatments provided either low (LowN; 12% CP) or high (HighN; 18% CP) degradable protein to modify the amount of total ammonia nitrogen (TAN) excreted. The cows were housed for two 8-week periods in two mechanically ventilated rooms equipped to manage manure either in liquid (LM; slurry) or solid form (SM; deep litter). In the LM treatment, N balance was measured for 4 days. As expected, animals fed the LowN diet ingested 35% less N and excreted 65% less N in their urine, with no reduction in faecal N excretion and N secretion in milk. On the LowN diet, excretion of urea-N and NH₃-N emissions were reduced regardless of the manure management. On the HighN diet, urinary urea-N excretion was three times as high, while NH₃-N emissions were 3.0 and 4.5 times as high in LM and SM, respectively. Manure management strongly influenced CH₄-C emissions, which were 30% higher in SM than in LM, due to the accumulation of litter. Moreover, gas emissions from solid manure increased over the accumulation period, except for NH₃ on the LowN diet. Finally, our results suggest that methods used for national inventories would become more accurate by considering the variability in TAN excretion, which is the primary factor that influences NH₃ emissions.     

Global food supply: land use efficiency of livestock systems

Purpose

Livestock already use most global agricultural land, whereas the demand for animal-source food (ASF) is expected to increase. To address the contribution of livestock to global food supply, we need a measure for land use efficiency of livestock systems.

Methods

Existing measures capture different aspects of the debate about land use efficiency of livestock systems, such as plant productivity and the efficiency of converting feed, especially human-inedible feed, into animal products. So far, the suitability of land for cultivation of food crops has not been accounted for. Our land use ratio (LUR) includes all above-mentioned aspects and yields a realistic insight into land use efficiency of livestock systems. LUR is defined as the maximum amount of human-digestible protein (HDP) derived from food crops on all land used to cultivate feed required to produce 1 kg ASF over the amount of HDP in that 1 kg ASF. We illustrated our concept for three case systems.

Results and discussion

The LUR for the case of laying hens equaled 2.08, implying that land required to produce 1 kg HDP from laying hens could directly yield 2.08 kg HDP from human food crops. For dairy cows, the LUR was 2.10 when kept on sandy soils and 0.67 when kept on peat soils. The LUR for dairy cows on peat soils was lower compared to cows on sandy soils because land used to grow grass and grass silage for cows on peats was unsuitable for direct production of food crops. A LUR <1.0 is considered efficient in terms of global food supply and implies that animals produce more HDP per square metre than crops.

Conclusions

Values <1.0 demonstrate that livestock produce HDP more efficiently than crops. Such livestock systems (with a LUR?<?1.0), therefore, do have a role in future food supply and therefore contribute to food security. Our LUR offers identification of livestock production systems that contribute to global food supply, i.e. systems that value land with low opportunity costs for arable production and/or by-products from crop cultivation or the food or energy industry.