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Milk production and estimated enteric methane emission from cows grazing ryegrass pastures in small-scale dairy systems in Mexico

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Abstract

The work assessed the productive response and estimated enteric methane (CH4) emissions of dairy cows grazing in small-scale dairy systems. Treatments were grazing annual pasture (AP) mainly of annual ryegrass and perennial pasture (PP) mainly of perennial ryegrass, complemented daily with 3.72 kg DM/cow of commercial concentrate. Eight Holstein cows were used in a double cross-over design with three 14-day-each experimental periods for animal variables and CH4 emissions. Pasture variables were analysed with a split-plot design. AP showed higher sward height (P < 0.05) with no differences (P > 0.05) in net herbage accumulation or in herbage chemical composition. Cows on AP yielded 24.6% more milk (P < 0.001) than grazing PP, but there were no differences in milk fat and protein content. There were differences (P ≤ 0.05) among periods for milk yields, but no differences among periods for milk fat and protein. Milk urea nitrogen was significantly higher (P < 0.001) in PP than in AP with no differences among periods. There was higher (P < 0.001) DMI for AP than PP with a significant decline (P < 0.05) as periods progressed. There was a trend (P = 0.08) for higher daily CH4/cow in AP, but significantly lower emissions (7.2%) in AP/kg DMI, and 20.1% lower emission intensity of g CH4/kg milk. The proportion of gross energy lost as CH4 for AP was lower (P < 0.01). Higher milk yields in AP resulted in a 26% higher margin over feed costs than for PP. Results show that grazing annual pastures with moderate concentrate supplementation results in higher milk yields, higher incomes, and reduces the intensity of CH4 emissions.

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Acknowledgements

The authors express gratitude to the farmers who participated in this experiment, whose privacy is respected by not disclosing their names. We thanks also Ms. Laura Edith Martínez-Contreras for her assistance in laboratory analyses.

Funding

This work received funding from the Autonomous University of the State of Mexico (Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México) through grant UAEM 4487/2018/CI, and the Mexican National Council for Science and Technology (CONACYT—Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología) for the postgraduate grant for Sirley Carrillo Hernández.

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  1. Instituto de Ciencias Agropecuarias y Rurales (ICAR), Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Campus UAEM El Cerrillo, El Cerrillo Piedras Blancas, 50090, Toluca, Estado de México, Mexico

    Sirley Carrillo-Hernández, Felipe López-González, Julieta Gertrudis Estrada-Flores & Carlos Manuel Arriaga-Jordán

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  1. Sirley Carrillo-Hernández
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Correspondence to Carlos Manuel Arriaga-Jordán.

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The paper reports an on-farm experiment undertaken with the active participation of four collaborating farmers who had knowledge of the objectives of the work and were duly informed at all times, and their privacy and that of their families is respected by not disclosing their names. On-farm research with collaborating farmers, and experimental methods with dairy cows followed accepted research procedures by Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México.

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Carrillo-Hernández, S., López-González, F., Estrada-Flores, J.G. et al. Milk production and estimated enteric methane emission from cows grazing ryegrass pastures in small-scale dairy systems in Mexico. Trop Anim Health Prod 52, 3609–3619 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-020-02398-0

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