Climate change is amplifying the challenges of increasing global demand for agricultural commodities, animal feed and fuel in the face of population growth. Highly dependent on local weather conditions, agriculture is extremely sensitive to changes in climate. Even within the global UN Climate Change process, agriculture-related topics are being examined by one of the convention's main subsidiary bodies (SBSTA), which recently
met in Bonn, Germany: a roadmap involving a process of submissions and expert meetings was agreed during the 2014 Bonn climate negotiations.
It is in this light that Climate KIC, South Pole Group and Agolin SA, a Swiss producer of feed additives for livestock, have partnered to carry out an innovation project called RuMeClean (Reduced Methane from Ruminants). The goal of the project is to ensure the adoption of feed additives that have a proven potential to reduce methane emissions from ruminants. The RuMeClean project aims to unlock the vast and presently untapped potential for methane reduction from livestock, currently responsible for 9% to 18% of global methane emissions.
The project involves key experts in the livestock and climate mitigation sector and is in the process of registering an emission reduction project adopting a feed additive with the Swiss Government. If successful, a worldwide application of methane reducing feed additives in key producing markets will have a huge impact on global GHG emissions in agriculture. From a business perspective, climate smart agriculture translates into an opportunity to make corporate climate efforts more visible and to brand low carbon products. The project is one of the innovative solutions available in the CSA Booster Organisation whose main goal is to increase the development, marketing and adoption of CSA solutions in Europe.
