Myanmar Business Today
South China Agricultural University has engineered a new pig that’s better for the environment. Animal manure pollutes waterways and contributes to global warming. Pigs are consumed more than any other meat on the planet. The new pigs will help slow climate change with manure that’s lower in nitrogen and phosphorous.
The Problem With Pigs And Their Poop
Pigs are delicious, but there’s one major downside to their production: they stink at pooping. Pigs are a drag on the environment because they lack three enzymes critical to digesting the nitrogen and phosphorous in their feed. The undigested nitrogen and phosphorous gets released into the atmosphere and pollutes waterways.
Warosu
Farmers could add these enzymes to their feed, but it wouldn’t be cost-effective. Scientists in China have been working hard to squeeze out a solution, and they finally plopped one out.
A New, Better-Pooping Pig
Zhenfang Wu, the senior author of the study, said that “the aim of [the] study was to enhance the digestion of feed grain in pigs to see if it lowered the release of both phosphorus and nitrogen from their manure,” and they managed to do just that.
Quartz
Scientists genetically engineered pigs to better digest these nutrients. They enhanced the pigs’ salivary glands to begin breaking down the nitrogen and phosphorous immediately. Scientists also altered the microbial communities of the pigs’ digestive tracts.
How Better Pig Poop Helps The Planet
Pig doodie with less nitrogen and phosphorous is better for the water and soil at pig production sites. In the U.S., nitrogen and phosphorous pollute the water in over 100,000 miles of streams and rivers and in 2.5 million acres of lakes, ponds, and reservoirs. The excess nitrogen and phosphorous leads to algae blooms that suffocate aquatic life and make the water toxic for animals to drink.
The Epoch Times
Reduced nitrogen in pig poop is also great for the atmosphere. Nitrous oxide accounts for only 6 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, but it traps 300 times more heat than carbon dioxide. Better pig manure is a home run for mother Earth.