Whole-farm greenhouse gas emissions from a backgrounding beef production system using an observation-based and model-based approach

Abstract

Stewart, A. A., Alemu, A. W., Ominski, K. H., Wilson, C. H., Tremorin, D. G., Wittenberg, K. M., Tenuta, M. and Janzen, H. H. 2014. Whole-farm greenhouse gas emissions from a backgrounding beef production system using an observation-based and model-based approach. Can. J. Anim. Sci. 94: 463–477. Backgrounding, raising weaned beef cattle in preparation for finishing in a feedlot, is a common practice in western Canadian beef production systems. The objectives of this study were: (i) to assess the whole-farm greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from a pasture-based backgrounding system using an observation-based and model-based approach and (ii) to compare model-based estimated emissions with observation-based emissions from the key components of the farm, in order to identify the knowledge gaps that merit further study. For the observation-based approach, emissions were garnered from a multi-disciplinary field study that examined three fertility treatments applied to the pasture grazed by beef cattle: (i) no liq...