Cow Burps and the End of the World

The world’s most problem burpers are cows. That’s because cows have stomach bacteria that helps them digest food. These bacteria pass gas in the cow's stomach. Rude!

What's weird is that the gas that these bacteria are farting has methane. That’s really rude! Methane is one of the gases most responsible for global warming.

But can a few billion burping cows actually warm up the planet? Apparently so! The average cow burps (and bombs) 200 to 400 pounds of methane a year. And that's why the United Nations says that livestock like cows pose a bigger threat to global warming than all the world’s cars and trucks put together.

Luckily, responsible farmers are now feeding their cows foods that are high in Omega-3 fatty acids, like alfalfa. This makes the cow burp less than it would on the usual cow diet of corn and soy. And farmers who use this feed think that cows are happier and healthier. (Hey, if my burping stopped heating up the planet, I’d be happy too.)