Soon, you may be able to go ahead and have that milk shake or beef steak without feeling guilty about pushing the world along the path to climate doom. Elanco Animal Health Inc (NYSE: ELAN) has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has completed its comprehensive, multi-year review of Bovaer (3-NOP), a first-in-class methane-reducing feed ingredient, and determined that the product meets safety and efficacy requirements for use in lactating dairy cattle.
“This monumental announcement has the ability to accelerate the opportunity for climate-neutral dairy farming while creating a new revenue stream for dairy farmers across the country,” said Jeff Simmons, president and chief executive officer, Elanco Animal Health.
Simmons said Bovaer represents another example of Elanco being a partner of choice in animal health, “where the capabilities of our talented R&D, regulatory, and commercial teams are delivering significant value”. Swiss-Dutch company dsm-firmenich, working in nutrition, health, and beauty, developed this ingredient which effectively and immediately reduces methane emissions from cattle. In 2022, dsm-firmenich and Elanco Animal Health announced a strategic collaboration for the registration, marketing and sales, and longer-term production of Bovaer in the U.S.
Simmons added, “As global temperatures breach new thresholds, consumers demand more sustainable products and the farm economy battles profitability challenges, we are excited to bring Bovaer to the market as a potential solution. Bovaer will create value for farmers, while helping food companies meet consumer demands and deliver on their sustainability commitments.”
Bovaer is a feed ingredient for cattle (and other ruminants such as sheep, goats, and deer) researched and developed over 10 years. It works by suppressing the enzyme in the cow’s rumen that forms methane. A quarter teaspoon of Bovaer per cow per diem consistently reduces enteric methane emission by on average 30% for dairy cows and 45% for feedlot beef cattle, dsm-firmenich said in a press release. Annually, that would mean a reduction of 1.2-1.8 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions. Feeding one million cows Bovaer would reduce emissions equivalent to removing more than 285,000 cars from the road for a year, Elanco Animal Health said in its press release.
The Swiss-Dutch company said the feed ingredient is commercially available in 59 countries, and has been tested in over 100 farm trials, across 20 countries, resulting in over 80 peer-reviewed scientific publications. Feeding Bovaer to cattle has proved to be safe for animals, producers and consumers, it said.
The announcement comes at a pivotal time. According to the U.N., the world’s population has until 2030 to curb greenhouse gas emissions or deal with irreversible impacts on the planet’s ecosystem. In response, about two-thirds of all Fortune 500 companies have set significant climate commitment goals. Reducing enteric methane emissions from cattle—naturally generated through the enteric fermentation process—represents a key opportunity.
Methane lasts about a decade in the atmosphere and is 27 times more potent than carbon dioxide at trapping heat—so smaller reductions create greater impact on temperature, according to the sixth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. By mitigating methane, the livestock industry can reduce the rate of climate warming and allow food companies and retailers to make meaningful progress toward their Scope 3 emissions goals.
“Reducing enteric methane is critical if we are to reach our climate goals,” said Dr Frank Mitloehner, CLEAR Center Director and University of California, Davis, professor and cooperative extension air quality specialist. “It’s exciting our farmers will have an important tool to do that, in Bovaer.”
