Danone targets feed-related emissions reductions through new MoU

Danone has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with biotech multinational Ajinomoto Co., Inc. to leverage the latter’s rumen-protected lysine formulation AjiPro-L.

Introduced in 2011, the feed supplement has an 80% efficacy in terms of both allowing lysine to pass through the cow’s rumen and be absorbed in the small intestine, all while supporting higher milk production. Leveraging the ingredient across dairy farms would reduce feed procurement-related emissions – more specifically, from sourcing soybean meal – by around 20%, according to the Ajinomoto Co.’s data.

Soybean meal, a by-product of the extraction of soybean oil, contains a high level of lysine, which is one of the amino acids that lactating dairy cows need to obtain through diet. But lysine must pass through the rumen and into the small intestine to be absorbed as a nutrient and have an impact on milk production. Various solutions, from rumen-protected lysine supplements to heat-treated soybeans, are being leveraged to achieve this.

At the same time, the procurement of soybean meal is associated with high carbon footprint. In the European Union alone, about 40% of soy is imported from Brazil, where soy grown for livestock feed is linked to a high level of emissions due to deforestation and land conversion.

For Danone, introducing the supplement to dairy farms has scope to address emissions from milk production while boosting milk production at the same time.

The dairy major says that soy and palm contained within animal feed accounts for ‘no more than 5%’ of its animal feed mix – but with 75% of soy produced globally being used within feed, ‘the use of these commodities for this purpose should not be overlooked’.