Ask Bovaer®

Greenhouse gases contribute to global warming and climate change, and methane has a stronger warming effect than carbon dioxide over the near term. Bovaer® is a feed additive for dairy and beef cattle that helps reduce methane emissions. Around 60% of the greenhouse gas footprint of a glass of milk comes from enteric methane, the gas produced when a cow digests its food, and cattle account for roughly 30% of human-related methane emissions globally. Cutting methane is one of the fastest ways to slow the pace of near-term global warming, while also helping improve air quality, crop production, and public health. Bovaer® was developed to give farmers a practical way to contribute to that goal.

Backed by more than 15 years of research and development by dsm-firmenich, Bovaer® is a feed additive that reduces methane production in the rumen, the first of the cow’s stomach chambers, without changing the cow, its milk, or its meat. It is backed by more than 150 peer-reviewed scientific publications and 150+ trials and on-farm studies, is authorized in 70 countries, and is fed daily to more than 500,000 cattle across more than 25 countries. It has been reviewed by independent food safety authorities worldwide, including the most demanding ones such as the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA), and Japan's Food Safety Committee.

As with any new technology connected to food and farming, Bovaer® has attracted genuine curiosity from farmers, scientists, policymakers, journalists, and consumers. Questions about how it works, whether it is safe, and what it means for the food on our plates are entirely reasonable. Explore the answers below, and use the Bovaer® contact route if your question is not covered.