Optimizing diet and pasture management to improve sustainability of U.S. beef production

Abstract

a b s t r a c tSystem sustainability balances environmental impact, economic viability and social acceptability. Assessment methods to investigate impacts of enterprise management and consumer decisions on sustainability of beef cattle operations are critically needed. Tools of this nature are especially important given the predictions of climate variability and the dependence of beef production systems on forage availability. A model optimizing nutritional and pasture management was created to examine the environmental impact of beef production. The model integrated modules calculating cradle-to-farm gate environmental impact, diet cost, pasture growth and willingness to pay (WTP). Least-cost diet and pasture management options served as a baseline to which environmental-impact reducing scenarios were compared. Economic viability was ensured by a constraint limiting change in diet cost to less than consumer WTP. Increased WTP was associated with improved social acceptability. Model outputs were evaluated by comparing to published data. Sensitivity analysis of the WTP constraint was conducted. A series of scenarios then examined how forecasted changes in precipitation patterns might alter forage supply and opportunities to reduce environmental impact in three regions in the United States. On a national scale, single-objective optimization indicated individual reductions in greenhouse gases (GHG), land use and water use of 3.6%, 5.4% and 4.3% were possible by changing diets. Multi-objective optimization demonstrated that GHG, land and water use could be simultaneously reduced by 2.3%. To achieve this change, cow-calf diets relied on grass hay, continuously-or rotationally-grazed irrigated and fertilized pasture as well as rotationally-grazed pasture. Stocker diets used rotationally-grazed, irrigated and fertilized pasture and feedlot diets used grass hay as a forage source. The model was sensitive to consumer WTP. When alternative precipitation patterns were simulated, opportunities to decrease the environmental impact of beef production in the Pacific Northwest and Texas were reduced by precipitation changes; whereas opportunities in the Midwest improved. Economic viability, rather than biological limitations, reduced the potential to improve environmental impact under future precipitation scenarios. Decreased spring rainfall resulted in lower pasture yields and required greater use of stored forages. Related increases in diet cost reduced opportunities to appropriate funds toward investment in environmental-impact reducing pasture management strategies. The model developed in this study is a robust tool that can be used to assess the impacts of enterprise management and consumer decisions on beef production sustainability.

Economic and environmental feasibility of beef production in different feed management systems in the Pampa biome, southern Brazil

“…This higher emission reflects the native pasture management, supply and nutritional quality of pasture, the animal rate per hectare and the need for more grazing days for an animal to reach its slaughter weight of 430 kg. The results are similar to those found by Pelletier et al (2010) and White et al (2014), where pasture production improvement and intensification decreased the land use time required to slaughter an animal, and consequently decreased GHG emissions. Åby et al (2013) found different data, where emissions costs were higher cost for more intensive systems, what can be explained by grains use and emissions related to its production.…”

“…Consequently, it is expected that feed efficiency would correspond in reduced methane emissions, or vice versa (Åby et al, 2013;Beauchemin et al, 2008). In a recent study on cattle diet optimization in the United States, White et al (2014) concluded that pasture production improvement through intensification and management reduced GHG emissions per produced unit.…”

Percepción de la indicación geográfica en carne bovina y disposición a pagar

“…Inspección sanitaria, local de producción y trazabilidad son certificaciones para la carne bovina importantes desde la óptica de los consumidores según Barcellos, Abicht, Brandão, Canozzi & Collares (2012). Además, los sistemas de producción generan gran expectativa y aceptación entre los consumidores (Morales, Aguiar, Subiabre & Realini, 2013), no obstante, aún existen consumidores que no están preocupados de como ocurre la cría y la faena de animales que originan el producto que consume (Vasconcelos Queiroz, Barbosa Filho, Albiero, Freitas Brasil e Melo, 2014) y cuando existe preocupación, los consumidores de carne prefieren aquellos producidos en un sistema a base de pastura (White, Brady, Capper & Johnson et al, 2014).…”

Environmental Impacts of the Beef Production Chain in the Northeast of Portugal Using Life Cycle Assessment

“…Furthermore, there may be substantial reductions in GHG emissions in animal production through genetic screening, forage selection and management, inhibition of methane, and animal care [59]. Another solution to reduce these GHG emission is to improve the production and intensification of pastures to reduce the fattening time before animal slaughter [60]. Figure 4 shows the direct and indirect GHG emissions from the slaughterhouse with natural gas boilers (Mng) and from the slaughterhouse with a pellet boiler (Mp).…”