A methane (CH4) calculator, designed to tackle one of the most potent greenhouse gases (GHGs), could help reduce emissions from intensive livestock farming (raising cattle, pigs, or poultry in confinement). Developed by the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (EMBRAPA) and launched in August, ABC+Calc was created for public administrators but is not applicable to extensive livestock farming—the predominant system used in Brazil, in which animals are raised in large pasture areas. The tool is simple to use, only requiring basic property information, such as the number of animals and the waste management method, to provide an emissions estimate.
In intensive livestock farming, stored waste, especially feces and urine, promotes the growth of anaerobic bacteria, which thrive in low-oxygen conditions. They break down organic matter and produce CH4 and, to a lesser extent, nitrous oxide (N₂O), another GHG. The waste is usually stored in open-air cesspits where microorganisms transform it into biofertilizers, releasing methane into the atmosphere.
The app, which also estimates N₂O emissions, was developed using data from international studies and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It was created in partnership with Brazil’s Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAPA) and Instituto 17, an organization focused on sustainable development. During implementation, the tool was tested in ten Brazilian states that have set greenhouse gas reduction targets under the federal government’s low-carbon agriculture program, ABC+.
“With ABC+Calc, it’s possible to set annual targets and identify ways to reduce emissions,” says Airton Kunz, an industrial chemist from EMBRAPA Swine and Poultry who led the development process. “The emission of CH4 can be avoided, for example, with biodigesters capable of collecting biogas, an important renewable energy that can be used to generate electricity,” highlights Kunz. Burning methane in biodigesters produces carbon dioxide (CO₂), which has less of a greenhouse effect. A simpler solution is to compost animal waste.
Agronomist João Luís Nunes Carvalho of the National Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) and the Center for Carbon Studies in Tropical Agriculture (CCarbon)—one of the Research, Innovation, and Dissemination Centers (RIDCs) funded by FAPESP—says the calculator simplifies waste management. “You need complex equipment and calculations to directly measure CH4,” he points out.
Kunz adds that although intensive livestock farming accounts for only 5.7% of CH4 emissions, the calculator serves as a pilot for a future version that will assess emissions from extensive livestock farming. Cattle grazing on pasture are responsible for 30.5% of CH4 emissions, mostly due to gas released from their stomachs through burping.
The app, funded by the United Nations Environment Programme’s Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), is not yet available to individual farmers. It is currently being used by public policy managers, who have access to information about producers in government databases.
“For livestock farmers, the main incentive is to prepare their product for the emerging carbon market,” Carvalho points out. “If the production chain emits fewer GHGs, the product will be worth more,” says Carvalho, adding that GHG calculators are becoming more common in the agricultural sector. “It is likely that at some point, all the apps will be brought together into a single platform,” says the CNPEM researcher.
The story above was published with the title “Livestock farming calculator” in issue 356 of October/2025.
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