Is methane busting seaweed blocked in NZ by red tape?

CH4 Global utilises the red seaweed Asparagopsis armata, containing a class of compounds known as bromoforms which markedly reduce methane production in the gut when fed in small amounts to ruminants.

Originally begun as a New Zealand entity but now headquartered in Nevada, CH4 Global has launched a product called Methane Tamer, a feed additive for feedlot cattle, claimed to reduce enteric methane emissions by up to 90%. The company recently officially opened a new facility at Louth Bay in South Australia to grow and process Asparagopsis, with 10 large cultivation ponds capable of producing 80 tonnes a year. It plans to expand to 100 ponds within a year, and potentially 500 ponds in the future.

CH4 Global co-founder and chief executive Dr Steve Meller said Louth Bay was the first commercial facility of its kind. A patented pond-based growing system aimed to reduce production costs by up to 90% compared to tank-based methods, enabling CH4 Global to deliver its feed supplement at a price that ensures farming profitability without government subsidies.

"We are well and truly working towards eliminating one billion metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions and reaching 150 million cattle by 2030 through our local and international partnerships with feedlots and farmers," he said.

However, Methane Tamer is not registered for use in New Zealand.

"For its own various reasons MPI has chosen not to want to enable its use amongst New Zealand cattle, both beef and dairy," Meller told Dairy News.

MPI has "a perspective on its safety" not shared in other locations, he said.

But New Zealand was a small market on the global scale and the company would "go where it's wanted".

"I can categorically tell you in Australia it's wanted and it's needed."

The beef from Australian cattle using the product would be supplied into the US, Japan and the UK this year.

Meller said CH4 Global now has commercial partnerships to market Methane Tamer to Japan, South Korea and India. The Indian UPL company would also market it into much of South America.

The UPL contract alone was for enough product to service more cattle than the entire New Zealand cattle herd.

Meller said several dozen scientific papers have validated its safety at the levels used.

"It has a safety profile that's incredibly safe."

Meller said Asparagopsis was a natural seaweed, native to New Zealand and eaten as a condiment in Pacific cultures.

CH4 Global extracts nothing but water from the seaweed and adds nothing except stabilisers for the "incredibly unstable" active ingredients.

"We're the only compant that's managed to stabilise them appropriately," said Meller.

The first formulation is optimised for feedlot cattle, and would be added to feed at a rate of 0.5%.

Grazing systems would require a different delivery system, possibly a pellet fed tro cows at milking.

While some companies were trying to extract the active bromoforms, studies suggested the seaweed was more effective when used as a whole.

Meller said there were also products being developed in New Zealand based on synthetic molecules that would be delivered in a large bolus intended to last for months.

“We don’t think that’s the right way to go.”

Although now headquartered in the US – a change made largely to procure investment partners – and not selling in New Zealand in the foreseeable future, Meller said the company had a long association with New Zealand and would keep operating in Bluff.

Tailored Solutions - MPI

MPI says it welcomes novel and innovative ways to curb methane emissions, but New Zealand’s pasture-based farming system means we must develop “tailored solutions”.

In a statement to Rural News, MPI’s deputy director-general for New Zealand Food Safety Vincent Arbuckle said that for any new inhibitor product such as Asparagopsis to be registered under the Agricultural Compounds and Veterinary Medicines (ACVM) Act, it must be supported by good evidence that it is safe and effective in the New Zealand farming environment – and that it doesn’t lead to any trade issues when the commodity is exported.

Arbuckle said suppliers must demonstrate that any risks to public health, trade, animal welfare and biosecurity can be managed. Many regulators around the world were considering how best to manage those risks.

“A recent Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) document ‘Food Safety Implications from the use of Environmental Inhibitors in Agrifood Systems’ noted gaps in knowledge and potential food safety and trade implications.

“The paper was developed with input from Japan, Brazil, China, Australia, Canada, Chile, the United States and New Zealand; and noted bromoformcontaining seaweeds in feed need to be thoroughly assessed.”