New Zealand scraps plan to tax cow burps and farts

New Zealand's centre-right government announced on Tuesday that it would abandon its controversial plan to tax greenhouse gas emissions through cattle belching and farting, which has not gone down well with livestock farmers.

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“The government is committed to meeting its climate change commitments, without closing farms,” ​​New Zealand Agriculture Minister Todd Maclay said.

A new law will be introduced to Parliament this month to exclude the agricultural sector from the new emissions pricing scheme.

The minister added: “It is absurd that we are forced to move jobs and means of production, while the least carbon efficient countries produce the food the world needs.”

About six million cows and 26 million sheep graze in New Zealand. Just under half of greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture, with livestock being the main cause.

Cattle belching and flatulence release methane, while cattle urine releases nitrous oxide into the atmosphere.

The previous Labor government, led by Jacinda Ardern, unveiled this project targeting farm animals in October 2022, which angered breeders, hoping to achieve the goal of eliminating greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

At the same time, the new center-right government wants to help farmers reduce emissions through technology, without cutting production or exports, the agriculture minister said.

On Sunday, the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources announced his intention to cancel the ban on new oil and gas exploration in 2018, which angered the opposition and defense groups.