Fremantle Seaweed Secures Licence for Feed Additive That Can Reduce Cattle Methane Emissions by 80%

The licence was granted by FutureFeed, a company established with the involvement of Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, CSIRO. FutureFeed manages the global intellectual property rights for the use of Asparagopsis as a livestock feed ingredient to reduce methane emissions.

The licence will enable Fremantle Seaweed to proceed with the commercialisation of Reef4Beef. The company previously acquired Western Australia’s first commercial-scale Asparagopsis hatchery and seaweed processing facility, located in Fremantle.

The company’s production system includes an existing 32-hectare marine farm at Derbal Nara in Cockburn Sound. Fremantle Seaweed also plans to secure a 160-hectare marine lease and develop onshore processing facilities.

The company intends to establish Western Australia’s largest integrated Asparagopsis supply chain, covering seaweed propagation, ocean cultivation, processing and the delivery of the feed additive to livestock farms.

Fremantle Seaweed expects its first two planned ocean farms to produce up to 576 tonnes of Reef4Beef annually. This volume is expected to be sufficient for inclusion in the diets of approximately 25,000 head of cattle. Feedlot operators in Western Australia are expected to become the first customers.

According to Fremantle Seaweed Co-founder and Managing Director Chris De Kuyper, producers need practical tools to reduce methane emissions without fundamentally changing their existing feeding systems. Reef4Beef is designed to be integrated into current cattle diets.