A Review of Producer Adoption in the U.S. Beef Industry with Application to Enteric Methane Emission Mitigation Strategies

Cattle are ruminant animals that produce enteric methane (CH<sub>4</sub>) emissions as a byproduct of their natural digestive process. U.S. beef producers have been receiving pressure to reduce production emissions. The scientific community continues to research and develop methods to re...

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Main Authors: Jaime R. Luke, Glynn T. Tonsor
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-01-01
Series:Animals
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/15/2/144
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author Jaime R. Luke
Glynn T. Tonsor
author_facet Jaime R. Luke
Glynn T. Tonsor
author_sort Jaime R. Luke
collection DOAJ
description Cattle are ruminant animals that produce enteric methane (CH<sub>4</sub>) emissions as a byproduct of their natural digestive process. U.S. beef producers have been receiving pressure to reduce production emissions. The scientific community continues to research and develop methods to reduce enteric methane emissions, but adoption of such strategies by U.S. beef producers remains unknown. We complete a review on producer adoption in the U.S. beef industry to shed light on potential factors that may impact the adoption of emissions-mitigating strategies by U.S. beef producers. After querying nine research databases, fifty-five studies were gathered and synthesized. These studies span the beef supply chain and focus on topics including feed additives, management practices, and reproductive technologies. Economic returns are a key driver of U.S. beef producer adoption decisions, with accompanying considerations for the impacts on consumer perceptions and demand. Segmentation in the U.S. beef supply chain, with animals typically changing ownership multiple times prior to slaughter, may result in challenges in tracing and verifying the adoption of climate-focused strategies. Targeting large-scale producers may be the most efficient avenue to achieving emissions reduction goals via the adoption of methane-mitigating strategies. Younger producers could additionally be a target demographic for adoption efforts.
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spelling doaj-art-d9217a64d8d8498493dd88eb3224adf32025-01-24T13:17:44ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152025-01-0115214410.3390/ani15020144A Review of Producer Adoption in the U.S. Beef Industry with Application to Enteric Methane Emission Mitigation StrategiesJaime R. Luke0Glynn T. Tonsor1Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USADepartment of Agricultural Economics, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, USACattle are ruminant animals that produce enteric methane (CH<sub>4</sub>) emissions as a byproduct of their natural digestive process. U.S. beef producers have been receiving pressure to reduce production emissions. The scientific community continues to research and develop methods to reduce enteric methane emissions, but adoption of such strategies by U.S. beef producers remains unknown. We complete a review on producer adoption in the U.S. beef industry to shed light on potential factors that may impact the adoption of emissions-mitigating strategies by U.S. beef producers. After querying nine research databases, fifty-five studies were gathered and synthesized. These studies span the beef supply chain and focus on topics including feed additives, management practices, and reproductive technologies. Economic returns are a key driver of U.S. beef producer adoption decisions, with accompanying considerations for the impacts on consumer perceptions and demand. Segmentation in the U.S. beef supply chain, with animals typically changing ownership multiple times prior to slaughter, may result in challenges in tracing and verifying the adoption of climate-focused strategies. Targeting large-scale producers may be the most efficient avenue to achieving emissions reduction goals via the adoption of methane-mitigating strategies. Younger producers could additionally be a target demographic for adoption efforts.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/15/2/144cattleclimateeconomicsgreenhouse gasincentivessynthesis
spellingShingle Jaime R. Luke
Glynn T. Tonsor
A Review of Producer Adoption in the U.S. Beef Industry with Application to Enteric Methane Emission Mitigation Strategies
Animals
cattle
climate
economics
greenhouse gas
incentives
synthesis
title A Review of Producer Adoption in the U.S. Beef Industry with Application to Enteric Methane Emission Mitigation Strategies
title_full A Review of Producer Adoption in the U.S. Beef Industry with Application to Enteric Methane Emission Mitigation Strategies
title_fullStr A Review of Producer Adoption in the U.S. Beef Industry with Application to Enteric Methane Emission Mitigation Strategies
title_full_unstemmed A Review of Producer Adoption in the U.S. Beef Industry with Application to Enteric Methane Emission Mitigation Strategies
title_short A Review of Producer Adoption in the U.S. Beef Industry with Application to Enteric Methane Emission Mitigation Strategies
title_sort review of producer adoption in the u s beef industry with application to enteric methane emission mitigation strategies
topic cattle
climate
economics
greenhouse gas
incentives
synthesis
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/15/2/144
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