Effect of different genotypes of Tithonia diversifolia on fermentation of feed mixtures with Urochloa brizantha cv. Marandú

Tithonia diversifolia (Mexican sunflower) is a shrub used for animal feed that has outstanding agronomic and chemical characteristics. Its potential to modify the dynamics of fermentation and improve the supply of nutrients to ruminants has received considerable attention. This study was designed to determine the effect of different genotypes of T. diversifolia on ruminal fermentation and degradation of dry matter (DM), concentration of volatile fatty acids, and production of methane (CH4) when mixed with a low-quality tropical grass, Urochloa brizantha (palisade grass). In a randomised complete block design, mixtures of seven genotypes of T. diversifolia with U. brizantha cv. Marandú were evaluated by using the in vitro gas production technique. The effect of fertilisation was also evaluated for each genotype. Inclusion of T. diversifolia significantly (P < 0.05) increased the supply of nutrients and modified fermentation parameters. DM degradation of biomass after 72 h was greater in the presence of T. diversifolia than for feeds based only on U. brizantha (68.0% vs 63.4%; P < 0.01). CH4 production was lower (P < 0.05) during fermentation with some T. diversifolia genotypes (25.3 vs 27.7 mg CH4 g–1 incubated DM), and the acetic:propionic acid ratio was also lower. Fertilisation of T. diversifolia genotypes increased DM degradation, increased the content of certain nutrients (e.g. crude protein) and modified CH4 production. Therefore, inclusion of T. diversifolia in mixtures based on low-quality tropical grasses such as U. brizantha increases the supply of nutrients (crude protein, minerals, energy) and can modify the products of enteric fermentation, with some genotypes decreasing enteric CH4 emissions

Effect of Tithonia diversifolia (Hemsl.) A. Gray intake on in vivo methane (CH4) emission and milk production in dual-purpose cows in the Colombian Amazonian piedmont

The inclusion of Tithonia diversifolia in pasture-based diets is a promising alternative to increase bovine productivity, due to its chemical compo sition and wide adaptation, but there are few in vivo studies to determine its effect on methane yield and animal production in grazing systems. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of the T. diversifolia inclusion in a basal diet of Brachiaria humidicola on methane (CH4) emissions by enteric fermentation, and on milk yield and quality in dual-purpose cows. The polytunnel technique was used for the determination of methane yield and two diets were evaluated (Diet 1: Brachiaria humidicola 100%; Diet 2: T. diversifolia 15% + B. humidicola 85% dry matter basis) in the moderate rainy and rainy seasons using a cross-over experimental design; milk production was measured by daily milk weighing, and milk quality was determined using a LACTOSCAN analyzer. The inclusion of T. diversifolia did not increase the dry matter intake (P = 0.369), but increased the intake of crude protein and minerals, and reduced fiber intake, resulting in the increased yield of milk and its components in the moderate rainy season (P = 0.012). The inclusion of T. diversifolia reduced the absolute CH4 emissions (P = 0.016), Ym and emission intensity (per unit of fat, protein and kilogram fat and protein corrected milk yields) both in the moderate rainy and rainy seasons (P < 0.05). We conclude that the inclusion of T. diversifolia in the forage feed base in the humid tropics such as the Amazon piedmont can be used as a tool to both mitigate enteric CH4 emissions and to increase animal productivity and hence reduce emissions intensity, and thus reduce pressure on the agricultural frontier in critical areas such as the Amazon

Key factors for effective design and implementation of sustainable land use systems to reduce deforestation and enhance peacebuilding in Colombia

This Policy Brief provides scientifically sound guidance for decision makers to help integrate SLUS strategies into policy instruments, in order to promote synergies and address trade-offs between multiple objectives related to climate change mitigation, sustainable agriculture and peacebuilding

Factores clave para el diseño e implementación de sistemas sostenibles de uso de la tierra para la reducción de la deforestación y la construcción de paz en Colombia

Esta nota de orientación sobre políticas proporciona una guía científicamente sólida para que los tomadores de decisiones ayuden a integrar las estrategias SSUT (sistemas de uso sostenible del suelo) en los instrumentos de política, con el fin de promover sinergias y encontrar equilibrios entre los múltiples objetivos como son: la consolidación de la paz, la agricultura sostenible y la mitigación del cambio climático

Challenges and Opportunities for Improving Eco-Efficiency of Tropical Forage-Based Systems to Mitigate Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Forage-based livestock production plays a key role in national and regional economies, for food security and poverty alleviation. Livestock production is also considered as a major contributor to agricultural GHG emissions, however. While demand for livestock products is predicted to continue to increase, there is political and societal pressure both to reduce environmental impacts and to convert some of the pasture area to alternative uses such as crop production and environmental conservation. Thus it is essential to develop approaches for sustainable intensification of livestock systems to mitigate GHG emissions, addressing biophysical, socioeconomic and policy challenges. This paper highlights the potential of improved tropical forages in crop-livestock systems, and linked with policy incentives, to enhance livestock production while reducing its environmental footprint. We give examples for sustainable intensification to mitigate GHG emissions based on improved forages in Brazil and Colombia and suggest future perspectives

Climate-Smart Landscapes: Opportunities and Challenges for Integrating Adaptation and Mitigation in Tropical Agriculture

Addressing the global challenges of climate change, food security, and poverty alleviation requires enhancing the adaptive capacity and mitigation potential of agricultural landscapes across the tropics. However, adaptation and mitigation activities tend to be approached separately due to a variety of technical, political, financial, and socioeconomic constraints. Here, we demonstrate that many tropical agricultural systems can provide both mitigation and adaptation benefits if they are designed and managed appropriately and if the larger landscape context is considered. Many of the activities needed for adaptation and mitigation in tropical agricultural landscapes are the same needed for sustainable agriculture more generally, but thinking at the landscape scale opens a new dimension for achieving synergies. Intentional integration of adaptation and mitigation activities in agricultural landscapes offers significant benefits that go beyond the scope of climate change to food security, biodiversity conservation, and poverty alleviation. However, achieving these objectives will require transformative changes in current policies, institutional arrangements, and funding mechanisms to foster broad‐scale adoption of climate‐smart approaches in agricultural landscapes

Livestockplus: Supporting low emissions development in the Latin American cattle sector

This poster was presented also at TropenTag 2019, held September 18-20 2019 in Kasel, Germany. Except for adjustments to the conference’s style and format, the text is essentially the same as that published here: https://hdl.handle.net/10568/10366

Livestockplus: Supporting low emissions development in the Latin American cattle sector

This poster was presented also at the 7th Greenhouse Gas and Animal Agriculture Conference, held 4-10 August 2019 at Foz do Iguaçu, PR, Brazil. Except for adjustments to the conference’s style and format, the text is essentially the same as that published here: https://hdl.handle.net/10568/102484The livestock sector in the LAC region is facing different problems of: (i) low productivity (ii) soil erosion, and (iii) low profitability due to inadequate insertion to markets. To address these issues, improved pastures with environmental traits along with adequate management practices might be one of the most promising options of the livestock sector to mitigate climate change. The Livestockplus project seeks to apply the concept of sustainable intensification of livestock systems in two countries of the LAC region such as Costa Rica and Colombia, to provide technical support, generate critical information and guidelines necessary for identifying options; also contribute to planning and policies for scaling up of NAMAs

LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT FOR THE PRODUCTION OF CATTLE MILK IN AN INTENSIVE SILVOPASTORAL SYSTEM AND A CONVENTIONAL SYSTEM IN COLOMBIA

Currently, cattle systems have the challenge of improving their efficiency in order to satisfy the growing demand of livestock products while at the same time reducing their emissions. In order to estimate the main environmental impacts of bovine milk production and identify mitigation alternatives, a life cycle analysis (LCA) was conducted to compare an intensive silvopastoral systems (ISS) and a conventional system (CS) in Colombia. The structure of ISO 14044 was followed, with four functional units (FU); the estimated environmental impacts were: land use (LU), use of non-renewable energy (UNRE) and emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG). For all FU, the ISS had lower emissions of GHGs than the conventional system. To produce one kg of fat- and protein-corrected milk (FPCM) the ISS emitted 1 less GHG than the CS (2.05 vs. 2.34 kg CO2-eq). Regarding the use of non-renewable energy, the ISS required only 63% of the energy used in the CS to produce one kg FPCM (3.64 vs. 5.81 kg Mj-1) whilst for land use, the CS was more efficient in all UF compared to the ISS. We conclude that in ISS there are lower environmental impacts per unit of product, emitting less GHG and having lower UNRE

Nitrogen fixation and nitrous oxide emissions in tropical silvopastoral systems based on Urochloa grasses and Leucaena shrub legume

Cattle production in tropical regions is largely dependent on monoculture pastures, which are characterised by low technology adoption and high land occupation. The introduction of legumes in tropical pastures has been proposed as a potential alternative to increase forage and animal productivity while maintaining soil quality without the use of synthetic inputs. However, the impact of increased nitrogen inputs via symbiotic fixation by legumes on soil nitrogen gaseous losses has received limited attention. To evaluate the potential of shrub legumes to improve nitrogen cycling in pastures of Valle del Cauca, Colombia, we conducted a one-year study from 2021 to 2022. Four pasture treatments, including Urochloa hybrid cv. Cayman and U. brizantha cv. Toledo alone and in association with the shrub legume Leucaena diversifolia, were evaluated. We measured plant biomass production, forage nitrogen uptake, nitrogen fixation of L. diversifolia, and nitrous oxide emissions from soil after the application of urine patches in the pastures. Pasture treatments associated with L. diversifolia produced up to 36% more forage biomass and showed up to 50% higher nitrogen concentration in leaf tissue than the Cayman and Toledo grasses growing alone. Furthermore, the proportion of nitrogen derived from the atmosphere in L. diversifolia was estimated to be around 50%. Although absolute nitrous oxide emissions after the application of urine patches were higher in pastures associated with L. diversifolia, the increase in forage production per unit area led to up to 18% lower intensity of emissions than in grass alone pastures. Our findings suggest that integrating Urochloa grasses with legumes such as L. diversifolia is a promising alternative to sustainably intensify animal production without increasing gaseous N losses