This review was prepared by Hamed Kioumarsi, EBS, Springer Nature, and Pooya Shahinkhoo (Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany).

Citation: Kioumarsi, H., & Shahinkhoo, P. (2026). The Environmental and Food-Security Implications of Reducing Methane from Livestock. Research Communities by Springer Nature. https://go.nature.com/4dN5UQC

 Introduction

Livestock production is an important component of the global food system. Livestock is used by millions of people all over the world as a source of meat, milk, eggs, and income. However, livestock production contributes to environmental challenges including the emission of greenhouse gases, land use, deforestation, biodiversity loss, and climate change. Livestock is responsible for the emission of greenhouse gases such as methane (CH₄) that is emitted during the digestive process of ruminants. The mitigation of the emission of methane from livestock is, therefore, not merely a matter of climate change, but is associated with the challenges of food security, sustainable agriculture, biodiversity, and transition to net-zero emissions. In order to achieve net-zero emissions globally, there should be a concerted effort in different areas including technology, production systems, policies, and society at large. Livestock systems are a component of this broader transition.

Why is livestock methane important?

Despite being a potent greenhouse gas, methane spends much shorter time in the atmosphere in comparison with CO2, while its influence on the Earth's temperature during the time it exists is higher. So, methane emission reduction makes sense in the process of global warming mitigation.

As far as farm animals are concerned, one of the ways methane is released into the atmosphere is enteric fermentation occurring in the digestive tract of animals. This fermentation process in ruminant animals  takes place due to the presence of micro-ecosystem in the digestive tract used to digest plant material such as grass. As a result, methane is produced and emitted into the atmosphere along with respiration and eructation processes. In addition, methane release is possible through manure, especially in case it is stored under anaerobic conditions.

In conclusion, besides helping in climate change mitigation, methane emission reduction may increase the efficiency of production as it implies energy loss of animals' feed.

This connection is particularly relevant in the context of net-zero emissions. The global climate action must employ a combination of technological, agricultural, economic, and policy solutions rather than a singular pathway. For livestock, such a combination is particularly relevant in that methane reduction must be considered as part of a broader shift towards more sustainable food systems.

Methane reduction and environmental sustainability

Reduction of methane gas emissions by the livestock has benefits other than those related to climate change. The agricultural sector is inherently linked to land, water, soil, ecosystems, and biodiversity. Productivity improvements in livestock production could lead to reduced use of environmental resources needed for production of a certain volume of food products. Improved feeds can, for example, lead to increased milk or meat production while generating fewer emissions of methane per unit weight of product. Healthy animals could be able to produce more products by better utilizing available feeds.

It should be noted that the issue of methane gas emissions alone does not equate to the problem of environmental sustainability. It is possible that a system with reduced methane gas emissions can lead to creation of other pressures on the environment due to excessive land degradation, water usage, nutrient contamination, and habitat destruction. That is why any efforts to reduce methane gas emissions should be made within the context of environmental sustainability.

The link between livestock systems and biodiversity is particularly important, as Kioumarsi et al. (2026) emphasize on the need to connect wildlife and biodiversity conservation with the Sustainable Development Goals. Climate action should not be considered separate from ecosystem protection; agricultural development must take into account the effects of land use decisions on habitats, wildlife, soil, and ecosystem services.

This broader perspective is particularly relevant when considering the potential expansion of livestock production. The conversion of forests, grasslands, and other natural ecosystems into agricultural land can result in biodiversity loss and additional carbon emissions. As such, improving the productivity and sustainability of agricultural land may, in certain cases, reduce the pressure to convert natural ecosystems.

Implications for food security

However, the relation between reduction in methane produced by the livestock and food security is complicated. Livestock is an essential source of protein-rich food and a source of income for farm-based communities globally. Meat, milk, and other livestock products offer protein and micronutrients to people, whereas the animals themselves give a possibility to earn money.

That is why climate policy should not treat livestock only as a source of negative consequences. On the contrary, the goal should be to develop measures that would allow retaining the positive aspects of raising livestock while minimizing unnecessary impact on the environment.

Improvement of feed efficiency is an example of such measures. The balanced feed will help livestock to absorb more nutrients and might reduce methane emissions. There are also ways to make the livestock more efficient in its work with feed like better veterinary services, animal health management, grazing, and manure management.

It is also necessary to note that there is a social aspect related to raising livestock. It can be difficult for small farmers to implement measures to reduce emissions because the advanced feed, breeds, technologies, and equipment need investment which can be unavailable to some people.

As such, the shift toward lower-emission livestock systems needs to involve education, financial support, technology transfer, research, and appropriate agricultural policies. Climate action must support farmers rather than place additional demands on them.

Livestock methane reduction and the SDGs

Decreasing the methane emissions caused by animals would be a good example of interlinkages between the SDGs. Kioumarsi's research, presented in the NexusSDGs Journal, shows how important it is to consider such interconnections rather than treat the SDGs as a list of independent targets. Sustainable development implies taking into account the interconnectivities between the environmental, economic, and social systems. To put it another way, the implementation of the goal to reduce the amount of methane emissions may have an effect not only on the goal of climate action but also on the cost of food, farmers' incomes, land use, animal performance, and biodiversity.

The same principle applies to the question of net-zero strategies. Rosen, Kioumarsi, and Gholipour Fereidouni (2025) describe climate action and net-zero emissions as interconnected challenges requiring long-term and coordinated responses. In terms of livestock agriculture, this means combining methane mitigation with improvements in production efficiency, land management, renewable energy, animal health, and resource use.

Challenges and trade-offs

Although it is clear that there are advantages in reducing methane emissions from livestock, it is a complex process that can never be addressed in isolation. Livestock systems are very diverse and differ widely from country to country and region to region across the world. What might work for a large-scale dairy operation might not be feasible for a subsistence farmer practicing grazing.

There might even be tradeoffs among different environmental goals. For example, increased livestock productivity might result in reduced methane per kilogram of food products, but the effect on the environment would depend on how feeds were grown and what kind of land management was used. Another example is substitution of one feedstuff for another one which leads to lower methane but higher land or water footprint.

For this reason, climate policies have to consider the whole food chain. According to Kioumarsi et al. (2026), global climate policies aimed at zero emissions need to take an integrated pathway with involvement of technologies, policy, economics, and society. It means that methane emission reduction policies should be supplemented by other actions to preserve ecosystems and use resources efficiently.

Conclusion

The mitigation of methane emissions by livestock is another area in which climate action can be linked to sustainable food production. The mitigation of methane will help efforts in slowing the rates of warming. Better nutrition, improved animal health, better breeding, and better grazing and manure practices will increase efficiency in production.

But livestock also produces food, generates income, livelihoods, and jobs. Thus, methane mitigation must not be looked at in isolation. Livestock plays many other roles in different communities and farming systems.

The wider sustainability approach suggested by Kioumarsi et al. is especially suitable for this task. Net-zero emissions, climate action, biodiversity conservation, food security, and the SDGs are all interrelated. The mitigation of methane in livestock requires not only the mitigation of one greenhouse gas. It requires the establishment of food systems that are resource efficient and ecological.

At the end of the day, the goal should be to establish livestock systems that will contribute to food security and at the same time be more climate resistant and sustainable. This is going to require scientific study, technological advance, policy formulation, and involvement of farmers. Understanding the linkages among climate change, agriculture, biodiversity, and sustainable development is central to this problem.

References

Rosen, M. A., Kioumarsi, H., & Gholipour Fereidouni, H. (2025). Climate action and net-zero emissions. European Journal of Sustainable Development Research, 9(4), em0334. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejosdr/16864Kioumarsi, H. (2026). NexusSDGs: A Scientific Platform Connecting the Sustainable Development Goals [Editorial]. NexusSDGs. https://malque.pub/ojs/index.php/sdgs/article/view/21770/7601Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Methane emissions in livestock and rice systems. FAO.