Arla Foods’ Commitment to Methane Reduction and Product Safety - Guest Editor Lydia Clare

Arla Foods’ Commitment to Methane Reduction and Product Safety

Arla Foods is reaffirming its dedication to sustainability by continuing its trials of the methane-reducing feed additive, Bovaer. This initiative underscores the company’s focus on both sustainability and product safety, particularly in light of recent misinformation spread on social media, which led to calls for a boycott of Arla products.

What is Bovaer?

Bovaer is an innovative feed additive developed by the Dutch company DSM, designed to reduce methane emissions from livestock—especially cows—by an average of 27%.

Active Ingredient: 3nitrooxypropanol (3NOP)

How It Works: Bovaer inhibits an enzyme in the rumen that produces methane, significantly reducing emissions without negatively impacting animal health or milk production.

Arla’s UK Trial

On November 26, Arla launched a trial of Bovaer across 30 UK farms, in collaboration with major retailers like Morrisons, Aldi, and Tesco. This initiative is part of Arla’s Future Dairy Partnership, and it aims to reduce CO2 emissions from milk production by 30% per kilogram of milk by 2030.

Addressing Public Concerns

The trial announcement was met with controversy on social media, with some users spreading unfounded claims about Bovaer’s safety and even connecting it to conspiracy theories. In response, Arla has taken steps to clarify these concerns.

Extensive Research: Bovaer has undergone 15 years of rigorous research and has been approved by both the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the Food Standards Agency (FSA). It is safely used in 29 countries worldwide.

No Impact on Milk: Importantly, the additive does not pass into the milk produced by cows during the trial.

Safety Assured: Arla emphasizes that its commitment to product safety and high quality dairy remains unwavering.

A spokesperson from Arla stated:

“As one of the UK’s largest food producers, Arla Foods is dedicated to reducing emissions while maintaining the quality and safety of our products. Together with our farmers, this trial is a critical step in lowering the carbon footprint of dairy production.”

Addressing Cost Implications

A key concern surrounding the use of Bovaer is its potential impact on feed costs. Adding this or similar additives to livestock feed would likely increase costs, as specialised products often do. Several questions remain about how these costs will be handled:

Cost per Dose: How much will Bovaer add to the cost of feed per animal per day?

Offsetting Benefits: Can the methane reduction lead to economic benefits, such as carbon credits or incentives for low emission milk production?

Who Will Bear the Costs?

The distribution of costs remains a critical question. It’s still unclear whether the added expense of the feed additive will fall solely on farmers, be shared across the supply chain, or be offset by retailer or government incentives.

Retailer Contributions: The collaboration with retailers like Tesco, Aldi, and Morrisons through the Future Dairy Partnership may offer a model for cost-sharing, helping to distribute the financial burden more equitably.

Sourcing and Pricing Control

Sourcing: DSM is currently the sole producer of Bovaer. This limited supply could give the company significant pricing power, making regulatory oversight important.

Price Regulation: Governments or industry bodies may need to intervene to ensure that the price of Bovaer remains accessible, particularly if its use becomes widespread.

Long-Term Strategy

If Bovaer is adopted on a larger scale, its production could increase, which might reduce costs over time. Additionally, there may be opportunities for governments to provide subsidise or financial incentives to encourage early adoption, without placing an undue financial strain on farmers.

Open Questions

Several open questions remain about the future of methane-reducing additives:

Will mandatory adoption create a competitive market, or will DSM retain its monopoly on production?

How will pricing be adjusted to ensure fairness for farms of all sizes?

What role will policymakers play in regulating or subsidizing the cost of the additive to prevent small-scale farmers from shouldering an unfair burden?

Next Steps

Arla, alongside its partners, will likely need to collaborate with farmers, government bodies, and industry regulators to address these issues. As trials progress, sharing findings on the additive’s cost impacts and exploring strategies for equitable implementation will be essential.

This is an evolving situation, and it’s crucial for farmers to have a voice in shaping how such innovations are adopted and integrated into the industry.