⏱️ The 63rd edition of our newsletter is a 6-minute read.

🙋‍♀️ Hi folks, it’s Ellie – your Mid North Coaster reporter.

How cool is this cloud that looks like a mountain range or volcano, snapped by reader Angie Douglas in South West Rocks on Wednesday afternoon as a storm rolled out to sea.

Thanks for sharing Angie.

If you ever want to get in touch to share a photo or a story tip, give feedback, or details of upcoming community events, simply reply to this email!

Today I’ll be heading to Crescent Head’s point to talk to locals about the area. I’m hoping to meet people on the pavement and ask them a bunch of questions, including whether or not they struggle with phone reception, where their favourite place to eat is, and what services they believe are missing – and more.

If you see me out there, please come say hi!

A colleague of mine recently attended a farmers convention in Victoria and ended up meeting “Macka”, a Gloucester cattle farmer, who told her how he is using genetics to pick livestock that cut emissions by producing less methane while cutting costs on feed. We’ll take a look at the story in today’s newsletter.

I’ll also share five affordable activities to do over the school holidays that are just around the corner.

But first, in case you missed it, here’s my interview with Thomas – the 93yo owner of The Clog Barn in Coffs Harbour and the man who hand-built the impressive, very detailed miniature village. We sat down for a chat in his workshop, where he spends his days fixing things like tiny window panes and mini windmill propellers. It was a such a joy to meet him and find out more about the beginnings of the iconic tourist attraction.

📹 And here’s the other video of my visit to The Clog Barn with my mum, where we learnt more about the history of the place.
➡️ Click to watch.

🐄 Could selective breeding hold the key to less hot air from the MNC herd?

What if every new generation of cattle on the Mid North Coast produced less methane than the one before? Researchers argue selective breeding can make that a reality, delivering permanent cuts to emissions in one of the region’s biggest industries.

🐮 What happens when cows burp?

When a cow breaks down feed in its four-chamber stomach, a small group of microbes called methanogens combine hydrogen and carbon dioxide into methane, which is mostly released when cows burp.

According to non-profit World Animal Protection, cows burp about every 90 seconds. If an example cow sleeps for four hours a day, but still burps when it’s asleep, that is about 1,000 burps a day. 

“Methane traps around 120 times as much heat as carbon dioxide does moment to moment,” said the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

But after about 12 years, it breaks down and doesn't trap heat anymore, unlike carbon dioxide, which stays in the atmosphere for hundreds to thousands of years.

🌾 Food matters when it comes to methane

Curtin University research estimates cattle produce between 50-120kg of methane per cow each year, with diet playing a major role. 

Hydrogen-rich, high-fibre feeds like grass or silage lead to more emissions, while grain or fat-rich diets reduce them, as there is less hydrogen available to be synthesised into methane.

Dairy cows are usually at the higher end of the range, with beef cattle lower.

🧬 Selective breeding

The Climate Council says agriculture was responsible for more than half of Australia’s methane emissions in 2022-23, nearly 65 percent of which came from cattle.

Farmers and researchers are now pointing to selective breeding as a promising way to bring emissions down. Selective genetic breeding chooses livestock with desirable traits so they become more common in future generations. 

CSIRO research points to scientists using a complex DNA breeding method called genomic selection to pick sires and dams - mothers and fathers - that pass on low-methane tendencies. Because these traits are inherited, the reductions are permanent and build with every generation.

👨‍🌾 Gloucester farmer cuts costs

Robert “Macka” McKenzie, a Black Angus farmer from Gloucester, said utilising the approach has cut his methane emissions, but also his overall feeding costs on farm.

“We're very focused on genetics to not only reduce our carbon footprint and our methane emissions, but also to add an increase in value per animal,” McKenzie said.

“We purchased a bull in Scotland just lately, that bull is number one in the world for feed efficiency. He eats 3.5kg of dry matter for one kilo of weight gain.”

Through genetics, McKenzie said his animals are now 40kg heavier at weaning than five years ago. 

“They're the things that we've brought together from all around the world to produce an animal that is not just more sustainable, but actually is more profitable.”

Thanks for reading! I’ll be back next week with more newsletters.
You can keep up to date on our Instagram, TikTok and Facebook, or check the website.

Have a lovely weekend, all!

👋 Ellie

P.S. I’ll be posting the correct answer to this video today, so keep an eye out for that, and if you haven’t already, why not join the hundreds of others and take a guess at the location!?