• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.60 no.6
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• pp.15.1-15.10
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• 2018

Methane emission from the enteric fermentation of ruminant livestock is a main source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission and a major concern for global warming. Methane emission is also associated with dietary energy lose; hence, reduce feed efficiency. Due to the negative environmental impacts, methane mitigation has come forward in last few decades. To date numerous efforts were made in order to reduce methane emission from ruminants. No table mitigation approaches are rumen manipulation, alteration of rumen fermentation, modification of rumen microbial biodiversity by different means and rarely by animal manipulations. However, a comprehensive exploration for a sustainable methane mitigation approach is still lacking. Dietary modification is directly linked to changes in the rumen fermentation pattern and types of end products. Studies showed that changing fermentation pattern is one of the most effective ways of methane abatement. Desirable dietary changes provide two fold benefits i.e. improve production and reduce GHG emissions. Therefore, the aim of this review is to discuss biology of methane emission from ruminants and its mitigation through dietary manipulation.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.34-50
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• 2024

Objectives: Transformation through a sustainable food system to provide healthy diets is essential for enhancing both human and planetary health. This study aimed to explain about sustainable diets and illustrate appropriate measurement of adherence to sustainable diets using a pre-existing index. Methods: For literature review, we used PubMed and Google Scholar databases by combining the search terms "development," "validation," "sustainable diet," "sustainable diet index," "planetary healthy diet," "EAT-Lancet diet," and "EAT-Lancet reference diet." For data presentation, we used data from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2017-2018, among adults aged 20 years and older (n = 3,920). Sustainable Diet Index-US (SDI-US), comprising four sub-indices corresponding to four dimensions of sustainable diets (nutritional quality, environmental impacts, affordability, and sociocultural practices), was calculated using data from 24-hour dietary recall interview, food expenditures, and food choices. A higher SDI-US score indicated greater adherence to sustainable diets (range: 4-20). This study also presented SDI-US scores according to the sociodemographic status. All analyses accounted for a complex survey design. Results: Of 148 papers, 16 were reviewed. Adherence to sustainable diets fell into 3 categories: EAT-Lancet reference diet-based (n = 8), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) definition-based (n = 4), and no specific guidelines but including the sustainability concept (n = 4). Importantly, FAO definition emphasizes on equal importance of four dimensions of diet (nutrition and health, economic, social and cultural, and environmental). The mean SDI-US score was 13 out of 20 points, and was higher in older, female, and highly educated adults than in their counterparts. Conclusions: This study highlighted that sustainable diets should be assessed using a multidimensional approach because of their complex nature. Currently, SDI can be a good option for operationalizing multidimensional sustainable diets. It is necessary to develop a Korean version of SDI through additional data collection, including environmental impact of food, food price, food budget, and use of ready-made products.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.14 no.5
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• pp.733-745
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• 2001

This review paper discusses the relevance and potential importance of food-feed systems in Asian agricultural systems, and in particular the role and contribution of legumes to these systems. A food-feed system is one that maintains, if not increases, the yield of food crops, sustains soil fertility, and provides dietary nutrients for animals. It involves a cropping pattern within which the feed crop has many beneficial effects without competing for land, soil nutrients and water with the food crops. The agricultural environment is described with reference to the priority agro-ecological zones and prevailing mixed farming systems in Asia. Within these systems, animal production is severely hampered by critical feed shortages which can however, be alleviated by the integration of suitable leguminous forages into the cropping systems. The review also focuses on the role and potential importance of leguminous forages in terms of biodiversity, their uses in farming systems, beneficial effects on animal performance, and draws attention to six case studies in different countries that clearly demonstrate many benefits of developing such food-feed systems. Considerable opportunities exist for widening the use of forage legumes in the development of systems with several complementary advantages (e.g. fenceline, cover crops, fodder banks, forage source and erosion control) to improve the development of sustainable crop-animal systems in Asia.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.79-89
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• 2007

This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the present status of several environmental problems caused by emerging toxic substances such as persistent organic pollutants (POPs), endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), and arsenic in various environmental media in Vietnam. Monitoring data reported during the 1990s demonstrated elevated contamination of DDTs in most of these compartments in Vietnam. Studies in frame of the Asia-Pacific Mussel Watch Program revealed that fish, mussels and resident birds from Vietnam contained higher concentrations of DDTs as compared to other countries in region, suggesting the role of Vietnamese environment as a significant emission source of DDT in the Southeast Asian region. The estimated dietary intakes of PCBs and DDTs for Vietnamese were relatively high among Asian developing countries, suggesting potential risk for humans posed by thesechemicals. Widespread contamination of some endocrine active compounds such as alkylphenols and phthalates was observed at various sites along the coasts of northern and middle Vietnam. The presence of significant source of bisphenol-A along Red River estuary was revealed with the concentrations comparable to those reported for developed nations. A case study on seasonal variation of alkylphenols and phthalates in surface water of river delta and estuary of north and middle Vietnam indicated the differences in distribution of these compounds between dry and rainy seasons. Higher concentrations of alkylphenols and phthalates were found in dry season in estuary; while the contrasting pattern was observed in the river delta, showing elevated residues in rainy season. This result suggests the different behavior of alkylphenols and phthalates in river delta and coastal environment. From ecotoxicological perspectives, concentrations of bis-phenol A and di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalates [DEHP] in surface water from some locations in Vietnam exceeded the guideline values for Ecotoxicological Effects and the Environmental Risk Limit, respectively, suggesting potential for toxic implications on aquatic wildlife. Widespread and elevated arsenic contamination was discovered inour recent surveys in groundwater in a large area of suburban areas of Hanoi city, the capital of Vietnam. The most recent investigation in 4 villages showed about more than 50 % of groundwater samples contained As concentrations exceeding 50 g/L (the WHO and Vietnamese standard). In particular, in Son Dong villages, 58 % of samples analyzed contained As concentrations higher than 200 g/L. Good correlations were found in As concentrations in water and hair and urine of peoples in corresponding families, suggesting the chronic exposure to As by people living in As-contaminated ground water areas. In Son Dong village, As levels in hair (mean: 1.7 mg/kg dry wt) and urine (g/g creatinine) exceeding the reference values recommended by WHO, suggesting potential for human risk posed by long term accumulation of As in human body. Future studies should be focused on the time trends of POPs and EDCs in biota in Vietnam in order to predict future trend of contamination and to reveal new clues for understanding possible toxic impacts on aquatic organisms. The issues of arsenic contamination in groundwater and their chronic toxic implications on human health should be systematically investigated in the future.