US Beef Industry Curriculum Removes Methane Lesson After Rancher Backlash

A free science curriculum distributed to US school districts has been altered after a lesson examining cattle methane emissions and climate change was removed following objections from ranchers. The educational program, produced by the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture and its Food and Agriculture Center for Science Education, reaches approximately 1.2 million students across more than 100 school districts.

Late last year, the foundation introduced a lesson titled “Methane & Cattle: A Climate Connection,” intended to teach high school students about how cattle digestive processes generate methane and affect atmospheric dynamics. However, the material drew criticism online from agricultural producers who disputed the premise that cattle contribute to global heating. Brett Kenzy, a South Dakota farmer and committee chair for the Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund United Stockgrowers of America, publicly criticized the module as unfair.

Rick Henningfeld, the education director for the foundation, confirmed during the CattleCon industry convention in February that the lesson was withdrawn in response to feedback. According to a recording of the event, Henningfeld stated that organizers intended to edit the material and republish it. A subsequent lesson published in July focused on cattle digestion without referencing methane or climate impacts.

The educational materials are financed through a mandatory levy on cattle sales known as the beef checkoff. Officials associated with the curriculum stated that the program aims to eliminate negative perceptions of the industry among future consumers. A foundation spokesperson stated that the topic could not be adequately addressed in a 45-minute lesson, adding that a longer version is currently under development with input from university experts to review research concerning the biogenic cycle.

Advocates for animal agriculture frequently contend that the biogenic cycle—whereby methane breaks down into carbon dioxide and is reabsorbed by grass over roughly twelve years—results in minimal additional global heating. Conversely, mainstream climate researchers maintain that biogenic methane remains a significant driver of climate change. Carl-Friedrich Schleussner, a climate scientist at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, noted that ongoing biogenic methane emissions sustain approximately 0.3 degrees Celsius of global warming to date, making emission reductions essential for slowing temperature increases.