A Tasmanian dairy, Ashgrove, is filling supermarket shelves with what it claims to be the world's first branded milk from cows fed on a seaweed that reduces their methane emissions, a major contributor to environmental damage. The livestock sector is responsible for approximately 30% of global methane emissions, as reported by the United Nations. Although seaweed and other feed supplements for cattle can decrease these greenhouse gas emissions, their widespread adoption has been hindered by costs. Since February, Ashgrove, a family-run dairy, has been feeding around 500 of its cows—representing a fifth of its herd—with an oil containing a seaweed extract that lowers methane production during digestion, according to co-owner Richard Bennett. These cows yield about 10,000 liters of milk daily, some of which is packaged as "Eco-Milk" and distributed throughout Tasmania, including at Woolworths, Australia's biggest supermarket chain.
Bennett reports a 25% reduction in methane emissions. Eco-Milk is a trial to gauge whether consumers are willing to pay a premium for dairy products with reduced environmental impact. A two-liter bottle is priced at A$5.50 ($3.67), which is twenty-five cents higher than standard full cream milk. Bennett notes that sales are promising, but the company has not yet decided on expanding the project. Companies producing feed additives designed to curb methane release by microbes in cows' stomachs have invested hundreds of millions of dollars to produce enough for millions of animals. Last year, French cheese producer Bel Group announced plans to feed an additive to about 10,000 dairy cows in Slovakia. Other companies like JBS, Danone, and Fonterra have experimented with additives but have not implemented them on a large scale.
The additive used by Ashgrove is provided by Tasmanian company Sea Forest. Sea Forest's CEO, Sam Elsom, hopes that Eco-Milk will gain popularity. "If these products aren't supported, things will revert to normal, and the rate of decarbonization will be much slower," he stated.
