Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Cow Burps - We Reduced Them First


I am half happy and half embarrassed to share this story. Its not like reducing cow burps and cow farts will change the temperature of the planet in any meaningful way but at least our frozen brains are doing SOMETHING towards that goal. As long as I can still get a cheeseburger that is made of beef and not some vegetable by-product then I am happy.

"Scientists in Canada have turned their attention to reducing bovine burps, in a bid to save the environment. Cows are said to cause three-quarters of the world's total methane emissions and have a major impact on global warming. As a result, the Canadian scientists from the University of Alberta are trying to breed cows which do not burp as much. Altering a cow's diets has already reduced their methane emissions by 25 percent, but now the boffins are looking at the genes responsible for methane rich burps. It is hoped that a burp free cow could be just around the corner, not a sentence I ever envisioned myself typing."

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