In eastern Canada, where the
dairy cow to beef cow ratio is high, the carbon footprint is increased by about 20%, whereas in western
Canada, where the dairy cow to beef cow ratio is low, the carbon footprint is only increased by 1–2%.
After having accounted for emissions from land management change and from allocated emissions from
the dairy sector, the average national carbon footprint of beef cattle in Canada has declined by nearly 50%
between 1981 and 2006. The carbon footprint of cattle will most likely continue to decrease in Canada
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thanks to improved productivity and practices such as swath grazing and bale grazing which are likely to
reduce GHG emissions associated with manure storage and handling.