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Greenhouse gas from livestock tackled at meeting

Farmers, scientists and government representatives are meeting in Canberra to look at ways of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from livestock.

Australia's livestock sector accounts for 12 per cent of all national greenhouse gas emissions.

Dr Mark Howden from the Bureau of Resource Sciences says there are a number of ways farmers can reduce emissions from their livestock.

"Methane is actually produced by bacteria within the rumen or the forestomach of things like cattle and sheep," he said. "By either reducing the number of bacteria in the rumen or reducing activity of the bacteria in the rumen or reducing the hydrogen which is the food that the bacteria use to produce methane you can reduce methane emissions."