According to a Welsh dairy farmer on Radio Wales' Country Focus last Sunday, a dairy cow in Wales is two-and-a-half times more efficient than the rest of the world.
[later] An Internet interruption prevented me from filling out what was meant to be merely a headline-grabber and left that first paragraph on its own looking like a troll. So it should be stressed that the above, illustrating the efficiency of farming in England and Wales, was only one of the points that Abi Reader made.
In the programme dedicated to an examination of the effects of agriculture on climate change, Dr Prysor Williams set the scene by explaining that production of carbon dioxide itself, the longest-lived contributor to the greenhouse effect, was negligible. The larger concerns were about methane (all those belching cows and sheep) and nitrous oxide. These two can contribute as much as 80% of the total greenhouse gas emissions from farms. The nitrous oxide, which I must admit I had not realised was part of the problem, stems from both artificial fertiliser and natural waste from animals.
Abi Reader pointed out that methane lives for about 10 or 11 years in the atmosphere before being reabsorbed in a natural cycle. If dairy cattle numbers stayed the same, methane from milk production would remain static. She placed her hopes on the quality of research in Wales. Such things as changing the content of cattle feed and generally reducing the amount of input for the same input. The NFU target of being carbon neutral by 2040 was achievable. Agriculture had the unique offer of being a carbon sink, for instance using trees and hedgerows. Farmers can also make use of the space they have to create energy which can be exported in the renewable energy market.
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