Methane Production from Grass-Fed Dairy Calves Across 4 Feeding Systems

72 male calves from 3 to 6 months of age were studied to measure in vitro methane production using the Hohenheim Gas Test protocol. The dataset, linked to a 2026 Livestock Science paper, includes gas and ammonia production, pH, and calf descriptors across three genotypes and four grass-based systems. Geoffrey Mesbahi authored this 1.4 MB collection of CSV files as part of the Horizon 2020 Re-Livestock project.

Use Cases

• Compare methane production across different grass-based feeding systems mentioned in the description.
• Analyze the influence of calf genotype on rumen fermentation outputs.
• Model relationships between rumen fluid pH, ammonia production, and gas generation.
• Validate in vitro assessment protocols for calf-level emissions.

Strengths

• Data is directly linked to a peer-reviewed scientific paper in Livestock Science.
• Includes results from 72 calves across 3 genotypes and 4 distinct feeding systems.
• Measurements follow a standardized protocol (Hohenheim Gas Test).

Limitations

• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.

Provenance

Source

Geoffrey Mesbahi via figshare.

Collection Method

In vitro measurements using the Hohenheim Gas Test protocol on rumen fluid and feed samples.

Time Range

Study involved calves from 3 to 6 months of age; specific sampling dates are included in the data.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-05-06 07:34:29; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Systems include lowland, mid-elevation, and alpine pasture areas, and one indoor system.