Effect of Suckling Management and Ewe Concentrate Level on Methane-Related Carbon Footprint of Lamb Meat in Sardinian Dairy Sheep Farming

Gianni Battacone,Giuseppe Pulina,Anna Nudda,Salvatore Pier Giacomo Rassu,Mondina Francesca Lunesu

doi:10.3390/ani11123605

Gianni Battacone, Giuseppe Pulina + Show 3 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11123605

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Abstract

Simple SummarySuckling lamb meat is the secondary product of the Mediterranean traditional dairy sheep industry. Similar to the main production, i.e., milk, lamb meat contributes to the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG), whose main portion is represented by enteric methane produced by the lamb dams. Such an emission, although limited in quantitative terms, should be mitigated by appropriate feeding or compensation techniques. Among all the sources of variation of meat lamb emissions, sex of the lamb and type of lambing (single or twins) showed the largest effect.The aim of this study was to estimate the methane-linked carbon footprint (CF) of the suckling lamb meat of Mediterranean dairy sheep. Ninety-six Sarda dairy ewes, divided into four groups of 24 animals each, were assigned to 2 × 2 factorial design. The experiment included the suckling lamb feeding system: traditional (TS), in which lambs followed their mothers on pasture during grazing time, vs. separated (SS), in which lambs remained indoors, separated from their mothers during the grazing time. Each group was divided into high (HS) and low (LS) supplemented ewes (600 g/d vs. 200 g/d of concentrate). The estimated CH4 emission of the ewes, calculated per kg of body weight (BW) gain of the lamb during the suckling period, was then converted to CO2eq with multiplying factor of 25. The TS lambs showed lower methane-linked emissions than SS ones (p < 0.05). The sex of lambs affected their methane-linked CF, with males having lower (p < 0.05) values than females. Twins displayed much lower methane-linked CF than singles (4.56 vs. 7.30 kg of CO2eq per kg of BW gained), whereas the level of supplementation did not affect greenhouse gases (GHG) emission. Interaction displayed lower and not-different GHG emissions for both indoor- and outdoor-reared twins. In conclusion, the methane-linked CF of the suckling lamb meat can be reduced by maintaining the traditional lamb rearing system and by improving flock prolificacy.

Highlights

Dairy lamb is a secondary product of dairy sheep farms, and it is consumed mostly in Mediterranean countries [1]
The methane-linked carbon footprint (CF) of the suckling lamb meat can be reduced by maintaining the traditional lamb rearing system and by improving flock prolificacy
Milk production of ewes in the first control after lamb slaughter were 1.36 ± 0.074 kg/d for Traditional system with high supplementation (TS-HS) group, 1.19 ± 0.075 kg/d for Traditional system with low supplementation (TS-LS) group, 1.28 ± 0.074 kg/d for system with high supplementation (SS-HS) group, and 1.32 ± 0.075 kg/d for system with low supplementation (SS-LS) group. They were slightly lower than those estimated by using Equation (3) (TS-HS: 1.68 ± 0.095 kg/d, TS-LS: 1.46 ± 0.069 kg/d, SS-HS: 1.32 ± 0.092 kg/d, SS-LS: 1.35 ± 0.068 kg/d; mean ± standard error) because milking normally produces slightly less milk than suckling

Summary

Introduction

Dairy lamb is a secondary product of dairy sheep farms, and it is consumed mostly in Mediterranean countries [1]. It represents a niche product appreciated by consumers for its nutritional and organoleptic characteristics, due to both the young slaughtering age (4–6 weeks of age) and the quality of maternal milk obtained mainly by grazing natural pastures [2]. Growing concerns of European citizens about the environmental impact of animal productions require that foods must guarantee sustainability, especially in terms of climate-altering gas emissions [6]. Most of this research deals with the environmental sustainability of beef and pork production

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