Healthier animals could help combat climate crisis, study finds

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A global consortium of researchers has outlined a promising approach to addressing the climate crisis through improved animal health, without the need to reduce livestock numbers or food production.

The study reveals that compromised animal health significantly contributes to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from livestock farming.

It was co-authored by Dr Frances Ryan, a researcher at SEBI-Livestock, based at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies.

Overlooked opportunity

The study highlights that common, low-grade infections and production diseases – such as parasites, mastitis and lameness – likely account for a large part of the emissions burden.

However, these issues are often not tracked as closely as high-profile disease outbreaks and are poorly represented in existing greenhouse gas accounting methods.

This oversight means that efforts to reduce emissions through improved animal health, although effective, are not acknowledged or measured in national inventories.

As a result, they may not receive the backing they require, representing a significant missed opportunity in the fight against climate change, the team says.

Win-win solution

The researchers propose a path forward to measure and account for reduced emissions through better animal health. They also make recommendations for actions to implement this win-win solution, which could benefit both the environment and the agricultural sector.

Livestock are crucial to livelihoods around the world and play an especially important role for food security, and the provision of nutrient-dense food in the global south. Reducing emissions by improving animal health allows us to address environmental issues while protecting people who rely on livestock.

Dr Frances Ryan

As pressure mounts on the agricultural sector to address its contribution to climate change, this research opens a new avenue for mitigation that doesn't require reducing livestock numbers.

By focusing on animal health, farmers and policymakers may be able to make significant strides in reducing greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining food production and supporting livelihoods dependent on livestock farming.

Global collaboration

The study brought together 16 researchers from 14 institutions working across three continents.

This diverse group, including veterinarians, animal scientists and ecologists, gathered earlier this year at a workshop in Belfast to address the challenge of enhancing the contribution of animal health to greenhouse gas mitigation and other forms of pollution reduction.

Improving animal health can deliver an immediate reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from livestock and at the same time improve production efficiency, but is not prioritised because its benefits are not well quantified. We propose a new and rigorous method to account for these benefits and drive action to reduce the impact of livestock systems.

Professor Ilias Kyriazakis

The research is published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

An Open Access version of the paper is available here: https://www.research.ed.ac.uk/en/publications/improve-animal-health-to-reduce-livestock-emissions-quantifying-a

Healthier livestock can deliver more cost-effective food production and enhanced animal welfare as well as mitigating environmental impacts. A research roadmap for reduced emissions through animal health helps to prioritise research to deliver on this great challenge.

Dr Johannes Charlier

SEBI-Livestock

The Centre for Supporting Evidence-Based Interventions in Livestock (SEBI-Livestock) mobilises and improves data and evidence to help the livestock community make better investments that improve livelihoods for smallholders in low and middle-income countries.

SEBI-Livestock is awarded to The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies at The University of Edinburgh and is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. For more information visit www.sebi-livestock.org.

Related links

Journal paper

SEBI-Livestock

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