Feeding curry spices to sheep cuts emissions

Feeding sheep curry spices can reduce the amount of methane they produce, according to researchers at Newcastle University.

A trial has suggested that feeding coriander and tumeric to sheep could reduce emissions by up to 40%.

The spices were found to work like an antibiotic –  killing the ‘bad’ methane-producing bacteria in the sheep’s gut whilst allowing the ‘good’ bacteria to thrive.

The findings, by research student Mohammad Mehedi Hasan and Dr Abdul Shakoor Chaudhry, have been published this week in the Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences 2010.

“Methane is a major contributor to global warming and the slow digestive system of ruminant animals such as cows and sheep makes them a key producer of the gas,” said Mohammad Mehedi Hasan.

“What my research found was that certain spices contain properties which make this digestive process more efficient so producing less waste – in this case, methane.”

Figures from DEFRA show that there were an estimated 30 million sheep producing around 20litres of methane a day in 2009.

This impacts on the environment but also leads to the sheep wasting energy which can result in a lower milk and meat yield.

The researchers have suggested that the results could be mirrored in other animals such as cows and goats.