{"id":3338,"date":"2026-04-15T05:00:36","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T05:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/?p=3338"},"modified":"2026-03-06T21:39:04","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T21:39:04","slug":"dairy-cattle-emissions-by-ndgp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/dairy-cattle-emissions-by-ndgp\/","title":{"rendered":"[Research Roundup] Using Genetics to Reduce Dairy Cattle Emissions by NDGP"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"3338\" class=\"elementor elementor-3338\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t<div data-particle_enable=\"false\" data-particle-mobile-disabled=\"false\" class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1f1756cf e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"1f1756cf\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-75a2f704 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"75a2f704\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span class=\"TextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\" lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"auto\"><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">This study by the <strong>Net-Zero Dairy Genome Project (NDGP)<\/strong> team\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">ex<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">plor<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">ed how\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">add<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">ing a methane<\/span><\/span><span class=\"TextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\" lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"auto\"><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">-specific trait to dairy cattle selection indexes can <\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">help\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">meaningfully reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The researchers <\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">assessed<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">\u00a0le\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">potential environmental benefits and farm-level profitability impacts of this approach within<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">le<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW6305836 BCX0\">\u00a0Canadian context.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><span class=\"EOP SCXW6305836 BCX0\" data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><h3>Keywords<\/h3><ul><li>Dairy Cattle<\/li><li>Greenhouse Gas (GHG)<\/li><li>Methane (CH<sub>4<\/sub>)<\/li><li>Selective breeding (Selection)<\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2d3846d elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"2d3846d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/18xmZihDlERNd-t_rwCGz6u1uJ1XGm5ez\/view?usp=sharing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/NDGP-Richardson-et-al-2025-1024x576.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-3421\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/NDGP-Richardson-et-al-2025-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/NDGP-Richardson-et-al-2025-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/NDGP-Richardson-et-al-2025-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/NDGP-Richardson-et-al-2025-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/NDGP-Richardson-et-al-2025-18x10.png 18w, https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/NDGP-Richardson-et-al-2025.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">Click to view this visual abstract as a PDF<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9ebd59a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"9ebd59a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>Research Highlights<\/h3><ul><li>Selective dairy cattle breeding can lower GHG emissions with minimal added cost and labour for farmers<\/li><li>GHG and methane traits can be built into breeding indexes that balance climate impact with profitability<\/li><li>Canada is the first country to release a methane breeding value and a GHG index that includes methane traits<\/li><li>Including methane traits matters: Emissions are further reduced by 30kg CO<sub>2<\/sub> equivalents yearly<\/li><\/ul><h3>Editorial Reflections<\/h3><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">This study\u00a0shows\u00a0how\u00a0genetic tools are evolving to address real-world sustainability challenges in dairy cattle farming. It also illustrates a pivotal shift in breeding philosophy, where environmental traits are no longer peripheral considerations but central drivers of innovation and\u00a0industry change.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Le <strong>Net-Zero Dairy Genome Project (NDGP)<\/strong>\u00a0aims to create a roadmap and toolbox to reduce GHG emissions in the Canadian dairy industry by 55%, focusing on improving efficiency and animal welfare in dairy production.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">Contributing authors from the team are (in alphabetical order):<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/christine-baes-732b2bbb\/?originalSubdomain=ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Christine Baes<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0\u2013 Project Lead, University of Guelph\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/filippomiglior\/?originalSubdomain=ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Filippo\u00a0Miglior<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0\u2013 Project Lead,\u00a0Lactanet\u00a0&amp;\u00a0University\u00a0of Guelph\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li><\/ul><p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Curious about Team <strong>Net-Zero Dairy Genome Project (NDGP)<\/strong>\u2019s ongoing work? Visit\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ndgp.ca\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">ndgp.ca<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0to learn more.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Food for Thought:<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0Read the\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.animal.2025.101491\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">full article here<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">.\u00a0Was it\u00a0surprising\u00a0that adding methane traits to the selection index led to such\u00a0significant\u00a0emissions\u00a0reductions? Why or why not?<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><h3>References<\/h3><p>Richardson, C., Amer, P., Post, M., Oliveria, T., Grant, K., Crowley, J., Quinton, C., Miglior, F., Fleming, A., Baes, C. F., &amp; Malchiodi, F. (2025). Breeding for sustainability: Development of an index to reduce greenhouse gas in dairy cattle. Animal, 19(Supplement 2), 101491. <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.animal.2025.101491\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.animal.2025.101491<\/a><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-950a2ba elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"950a2ba\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4689969 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4689969\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">About the Climate-Smart Agri-Food Network<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245418&quot;:true,&quot;134245529&quot;:true,&quot;335559738&quot;:360,&quot;335559739&quot;:80}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3><p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Funded by Genome Canada through the\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/genomecanada.ca\/challenge-areas\/climate-smart-agriculture-and-food-systems\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Climate\u2011Smart Agriculture and Food Systems<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0portfolio, the Network brings together nine Interdisciplinary Challenge Teams (ICTs) and two hubs \u2014 the\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/ag-act-agricultural-genomics-action-centre\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Agricultural Genomics Action Centre (AG\u2011ACt)<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0and the\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/cs-dcc-climate-smart-data-collaboration-centre\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Climate\u2011Smart Data Collaboration Centre (CS\u2011DCC)<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0\u2014 to advance climate\u2011smart agriculture through genomic innovations.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This study by the Net-Zero Dairy Genome Project (NDGP) team\u00a0explored how\u00a0adding a methane-specific trait to dairy cattle selection indexes can help\u00a0meaningfully reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The researchers assessed\u00a0the\u00a0potential environmental benefits and farm-level profitability impacts of this approach within\u00a0the\u00a0Canadian context. Keywords Dairy Cattle Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Methane (CH4) Selective breeding (Selection) Click to view this visual [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3419,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3338","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-homepage-news","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3338","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3338"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3338\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3681,"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3338\/revisions\/3681"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3419"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3338"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3338"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatesmartagrifood.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3338"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}