“Does Bovaer® change the dairy or meat we consume?” “Why isn’t Bovaer® labeled on dairy and beef products?”
Milk and meat from cows fed Bovaer® are safe to drink and eat. Leading independent food safety authorities, including the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA), have rigorously evaluated Bovaer® and confirmed its safety for animals, consumers, users, and the environment. The assessment covers the feed additive itself, potential safety concerns during handling, and what happens to it once consumed by the animal.
Bovaer® does not enter the cow’s milk or meat. It is rapidly broken down in the cow’s digestive system into compounds already naturally present in feed and the rumen. Under recommended commercial conditions, neither Bovaer® nor its breakdown products are detectable in milk or meat, even at trace levels. Consumers are not exposed to Bovaer® through milk and meat.
Bovaer® is added to dairy and beef cattle feed, not to milk or meat. It works in the rumen, where it helps reduce methane formation, and does not become part of the milk or meat. That is why it is not listed as an ingredient in milk, dairy products, or meat.
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"Does Bovaer® change the taste of milk and prevent it from being turned into cheese or yogurt?"
Bovaer® only affects the methane produced during digestion. The milk people drink looks, tastes, and performs the same as milk from cows not fed Bovaer®. Studies have consistently shown that milk from cows fed Bovaer® has the same taste, sensory characteristics, processing properties, and overall quality as milk from cows not fed Bovaer®. Research on butter and other dairy products has also found no meaningful differences in sensory or processing characteristics.
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Some posts associate screenshots of the Bovaer® Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for industrial handling purposes with requirements for protective equipment during use on farm. They claim Bovaer® feed would be unsafe for farmers in its final farm-use form.
SDS documents explain how concentrated ingredients should be handled safely in manufacturing settings. They are not assessments of normal on-farm use or of the safety of food on consumers’ plates. Similar industrial handling requirements apply to many everyday ingredients, including common table salt, baking soda, and vitamins.
Bovaer® is blended into farm minerals or premix feed before it arrives on farm. Farmers receive a premix, such as mineral feed, protein meal, or feed concentrate, containing Bovaer® in a highly diluted form. The premix can be handled using the same safety precautions as feed without Bovaer®. Safety data sheets and handling instructions relate to concentrated materials used at premixture or feed-manufacturing sites, not normal farm operations.
Sources:
UK Food Standards Agency (FSA). Bovaer® cow feed additive explained (official blog post), 5 December 2024. https://food.blog.gov.uk/2024/12/05/bovaer-cow-feed-additive-explained/
Bovaer® at Farm | Reduce methane. Create value.
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