Scientists to Breed Sheep that Burp Less

Seems like a good idea. Hopefully they breed some less gassy cows as well.

Or… maybe figure out a way to reduce the demand for and reliance on animals. The fewer people that eat animals/ use animal products, the less demand, the fewer animals are raised, the lower the emissions of methane, co2, etc…. Seems simple enough to me.

Actually I am suggesting that governments could reduce the demand, not the preference for meat. Animal farm subsidies create inexpensive meats (not proportional to the costs of raising/slaughtering/processing/transporting the animals). Another thing that could be done to reduce demand for meat is to ban “factory” farm practices. With animals at the true cost of production, in humane (well, more humane) farm settings, the use of animals would plummet. Therefore, less demand.

One more animal gas story and we’ve got a trifecta.

If they don’t burp, would they get the bends?
Gas has got to go somewhere. :p

The gas is generated by the bacteria that live in their rumen. A good approach would be to change the mixture of bacteria living there so they will not produce gaseous waste.

Methane is a common end-product of anaerobic bacteria, though. This implies that the part of the rumen that produces methane lacks sufficient oxygen to bring about a more complete breakdown of the food into carbon dioxide. A tough problem.