Page 49 - NZ Hereford Magazine 2023

allow agriculture to do to feed a growing population. He said and hybrid vigour, as well as having a significant feed efficiency
it was no longer a nicety, but a must. advantage supported by data from the U.S. Meat Animal
Many New Zealanders would like to think this will all go Research Center, so the breed was poised to demonstrate its
away with a change of government, but that’s not going to advantages for sustainability, relative to GHG emissions.
happen. As Kim Stackhouse-Lawson PhD told AHA, “If this So where does this leave NZ Herefords and fellow farmers?
issue was based on science, then it would have been squashed We know research is being done, here in New Zealand
a long time ago, instead it’s driven by emotion”. A belief and overseas, and we know the population is growing so
shared by Jacqueline. food production is a necessity. It’s unlikely a change of
Data from the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center government will change the requirement to find our licence
documented that Herefords consumed 1.7 pounds (0.771kg) to operate, so let’s jointly front-foot this, be proactive and
less feed per day when compared with Angus. This advantage not defensive. As natural conservationists over generations,
equated to 191 pounds (86.6kg) less corn per Hereford steer we need to keep building our story while science and the
during the feeding period. [Hereford World December 2022]. government catches up. Until then, live life like you will die
AHA chief operating officer Shane Bedwell said Herefords had tomorrow, farm as if you will live forever.
demonstrated their obvious advantages in fertility, longevity,

In defence of meat

Dr Jacqueline Rowarth, adjunct professor when comparing diets. Plants have evolved many mechanisms
Lincoln University, is a director of Ravensdown, to protect their proteins from animal predation. These are
DairyNZ and Deer Industry NZ. The analysis and termed ‘anti-nutritional factors’ – the nutrients appear to
conclusions below are her own. be present but can’t be accessed by the digestive system.
Treatments such as soaking, acidification, cooking and
jsrowarth@gmail.com fermentation, take time and energy, and cause losses. The result
is an increase in the greenhouse gas emissions associated with
Animal protein contains the essential amino acids (EAA) in the food.
ratios that meet human needs for fewer calories and less post- Also in the mix, and often overlooked in environmental
digestive wastage than in plants. impact calculations, are the supplements required for
Canterbury-based nutrition scientist Dr Graeme Coles has vegans, particularly vitamin B12. A deficiency in this is
calculated if identical twins meet their EAA through different associated with brain fog, tiredness… and could explain a lot
diets, the vegan twin will excrete twice as much nitrogen as the in vegan commitment.
omnivore twin. This is because to gain all the essential amino Animal protein is important for reducing human impact on
acids needed, the vegan twin will have to eat twice as much the planet, as well as for health. When animals are raised on
protein (and will also eat more calories, which also means more pasture, the fossil fuel and agrichemical requirement is a lot
resources, including land) as the omnivore. The surplus non- less than that required for plants.
essential amino acids in the vegan diet will be broken down in For health and maintenance of muscle, government
the liver for energy and the excess nitrogen will be eliminated nutrition scientists globally recognise the importance of meat
from the body. That nitrogen contributes to nitrous oxide, a for young and old. Hereford Prime would appear to fit the bill
potent and long-lived greenhouse gas, in the sewerage system. on all counts.
A further factor to consider is the bioavailability of protein

Year 2023 HEREFORD MAGAZINE 47