NEXT SEASON OF CLARKSON’S FARM WRITING ITSELF: Calls to Boycott Dairy Products From Cows Given Anti-Methane Supplement Grow in UK.

Methane from livestock is part of the biogenic carbon cycle, a natural process that recycles carbon between the atmosphere, plants, and animals.

Plants absorb the life-essential gas carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere through photosynthesis, converting it into carbohydrates like cellulose.  Cattle and other ruminants consume these plants, digesting the cellulose through fermentation within their digestive tracts. Cattle burp methane (or release it as flatulence), releasing the carbon back into the atmosphere.

After about 12 years, this methane breaks down and converts back to CO2.  Plants then reabsorb this CO2, restarting the cycle.

This cycle has worked well for many millions of years. However, eco-activists have begun targeting dairy farms and cattle ranches by asserting that methane, like C02, is a dangerous greenhouse gas that causes climate catastrophes.

This has led to a number of companies developing new cattle feeds to reduce bovine emissions. One of them is Bovaer, which was developed by Elanco Animal Health. The feed ingredient powder claims to reduce methane emissions from dairy cattle by almost 30% and works by suppressing a cow’s ability to produce methane during digestion.

Now it is being reported that Arla Foods is facing calls for a boycott of its products in the United Kingdom, including fresh milk, after announcing a new project to trial this feed additive on its farms.

I missed the memo –when did Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez become the UK’s prime minister? Banning “farting cows and airplanes” was a signature item in her Green Nude Eel — but then, 2019 really was a simpler, more carefree time.