PRESS RELEASE
INNOVATION OFFERS POSITIVE SOLUTION TO RED MEAT EMISSIONS
Modern varieties of ryegrass, proven to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from livestock,
offer the farming industry a significant opportunity to respond positively to one of the key
issues debated at the UN COP 21 conference - cutting red meat consumption.
Paul Billings, Managing Director of Germinal GB, points to over thirty years of
innovative plant breeding at IBERS Aberystwyth University that has led to the widespread
availability of the award winning Aber High Sugar Grass perennial and hybrid ryegrass
varieties.
“Independent research, partly funded by government, shows that these ryegrasses,
bred with higher water soluble carbohydrate content, reduce the environmental impact of
ruminant livestock,” he says.
“Studies have demonstrated that lambs grazing Aber High Sugar Grass released 20%
less methane per kilogram of liveweight gain than lambs on a standard ryegrass. This is
significant, not least because livestock are believed to account for approximately 37% of all
methane emissions.
“Similarly, in zero grazing trials with cattle undertaken at IBERS, the amount of feed
nitrogen lost in the urine was reduced by up to 24% from animals fed the Aber High Sugar
Grass variety. This lost nitrogen has the potential to convert to nitrous oxide, which is a
greenhouse gas with at least 250 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide.
“So, by grazing or ensiling these modern ryegrasses with higher water soluble
carbohydrate content, rumen efficiency can be improved in a completely natural way. This
results in a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
“As an industry, we have a real opportunity to cut greenhouse gas emissions and at
the same time improve the efficiency and productivity of ruminant livestock businesses. The
technology is available now and there is huge potential simply by reseeding with the best
available grass varieties.”
Germinal have been forward thinking in their approach to these ground breaking and
award winning products. The breeding programme that has created these ryegrasses began
in Aberystwyth in the early 1980s, producing the first Aber High Sugar Grass for commercial
sale in 2000. This variety, AberDart, won the NIAB Variety Cup in 2003 for its outstanding
contribution to crop productivity through improved quality, disease resistance, grower return
or commercial success. There have since been six further major industry awards recognising
the contribution of this breeding programme to farming and the environment.
Amongst the latest work to be carried out at IBERS is a project, funded through
Innovate UK, to improve seed yield from these varieties. This is resulting in increased
availability to meet global demand for seed of these ryegrass varieties.
-EndsNotes to editors:

Total greenhouse gas emissions are estimated to account for 14.5% of total global
greenhouse gas emissions. The main greenhouse gases associated with livestock
production are methane (has 28-36 times greater global warming potential than CO2)
and nitrous oxide (250-300 times greater global warming potential than CO2).
Industry awards relating to Aber High Sugar Grass:
 2015: AberGreen was awarded the NIAB Variety Cup in recognition of its improved
quality combined with excellent agronomic performance.
 2013: Aberystwyth University’s Institute of Biological Environmental and Rural
Sciences (IBERS) won the Outstanding Contribution to Innovation and Technology
award in the Times Higher Education Awards for the breeding and development of
Aber High Sugar Grasses.
 2011: The work of the IBERS plant breeding team at Aberystwyth University was
recognised with the presentation of the British Grassland Society Innovation Award
for the development of Aber High Sugar Grasses.
 2011: IBERS grass breeders responsible for Aber High Sugar Grasses were key
contributors to success that led to the department winning one of the first ever
Excellence With Impact Awards from the UK’s Biotechnology and Biological Sciences
Research Council.
 2009: The Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education was awarded
to IBERS for public good plant breeding that includes the development of Aber High
Sugar Grasses.
 2007: IBERS received the Royal Agricultural Society of England (RASE) Award for
Technology and Innovation for the development of Aber High Sugar Grasses as well
as other innovations in clover and oat/cereal varieties that have had a significant
impact over the last 20 years.
 2003: AberDart was awarded the NIAB Variety Cup in recognition of its improved
quality combined with excellent agronomic performance. This was the first tme this
cup was awarded to a forage crop variety.
®
Aber is a Registered Trademark of Germinal Holdings Ltd.
10 December 2015
Further information:
Paul Billings
Germinal GB
Tel: 0117 982 3691
Follow @wearegerminal for regular and topical information from
trial plots, farm and field, on all things relating to forage.
Issued by Matt Mellor, Agribusiness Communications Ltd
Tel: 01694 731777 E-mail: matt@abccomms.co.uk
The text from this news release can be downloaded directly from the ABC press centre at
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