Supplementation with whole cottonseed causes long-term reduction of methane emissions from lactating dairy cows offered a forage and cereal grain diet

Abstract

The objective of our work was to supplement a forage and cereal diet of lactating dairy cows with whole cottonseed (WCS) for 12 wk and to determine whether the expected reduction in CH4 would persist. A secondary objective was to determine the effect of supplementing the diet with WCS on milk yield and rumen function over the 12-wk feeding period. Fifty lactating cows were randomly allocated to 1 of 2 diets (control or WCS). The 2 separate groups were each offered, on average, 4.2kg of DM/cow per day of alfalfa hay (a.m.) and 6.6kg of DM/cow per day of ryegrass silage (p.m.) on the ground in bare paddocks each day for 12 wk. Cows in each group were also individually offered dietary supplemen..