THE global call for sustainable food systems resonates powerfully through this year’s World Food Day theme: ‘Hand in hand for better foods and a better future.’ Nowhere is this message more relevant than in Bangladesh’s livestock sector, a critical yet climate-vulnerable industry standing at the crossroads of opportunity and risk. The sector sustains millions of rural households and underpins national food security, yet it remains a significant source of methane, one of the most potent greenhouse gases driving global warming.
To secure a resilient future, Bangladesh must align with the spirit of World Food Day by leveraging international mechanisms such as Climate and Carbon Finance. Access to global carbon funding can turn the livestock industry from a climate liability into a climate solution. This transformation requires collaborative effort, government agencies, UN bodies, private enterprises and local farming communities must work hand in hand to create a low-carbon, economically inclusive model.
By incentivising farmers to adopt sustainable feeding systems, improved manure management and biogas technology, Bangladesh can simultaneously enhance rural incomes, food security, and environmental integrity. The key lies in unlocking untapped financial potential through carbon markets, rewarding emission reductions while reinforcing livelihoods for nearly 60 per cent of rural households. This approach not only advances Bangladesh’s climate goals but also redefines agriculture as a central player in global climate resilience.
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Methane challenge
METHANE (CHâ‚„) poses one of the greatest challenges to climate stability. While it remains in the atmosphere for only about 12 years, it traps roughly 25 times more heat than carbon dioxide during that period, rapidly accelerating global warming. The livestock industry, particularly ruminants such as cattle, buffalo, goats and sheep, is a major source of methane through a digestive process known as enteric fermentation. As these animals digest fibrous feed, methane is released, largely through burping, and to a lesser extent, flatulence.
Scientists estimate that each cow emits between 100 and 200 litres of methane per day. With millions of cattle across the globe, livestock accounts for approximately 32 per cent of all human-caused methane, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation. In Bangladesh, the scale of this challenge is vast: the ruminant population exceeds 60 million, making methane reduction a national priority.
The consequences are clear. Methane-driven warming intensifies extreme weather: sea-level rise, salinity intrusion, river erosion, storms, floods, heatwaves and droughts. But the opportunity is equally clear: cutting methane today yields measurable environmental benefits within a single generation. As a signatory to the Global Methane Pledge, Bangladesh has both the obligation and the opportunity to make its livestock industry a model of climate adaptation and mitigation.
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Turning emissions into opportunity
REDUCING livestock methane is not merely an environmental necessity, it can underpin a thriving green economy. The path forward integrates three complementary strategies:
Improved feed and nutrition:Enhancing animal diets remains the most direct route to lower emissions. High-quality grass, legumes, bypass feeds, probiotics, and specific additives such as yeast cultures, tannins, fat supplements, or even red seaweed can reduce methane emissions from digestion by up to 30 per cent. Such diets improve the efficiency of digestion, boost milk and meat yields and reduce production costs. The result is a rare win-win, lower emissions and higher profitability for farmers.
Waste management and energy recovery:Manure and slurry, if unmanaged, emit large volumes of methane. Converting this waste into biogas through anaerobic digestion not only prevents emissions but also generates renewable energy for cooking or electricity. Composting manure through aerobic methods further limits gas release and yields organic fertiliser for crops. These circular practices transform waste into assets, forming the cornerstone of a sustainable, green agriculture model.
Genetics and technology: Genetic improvement also plays a decisive role. Crossbred cattle, such as Holstein Friesian hybrids, tend to be more productive and emit less methane per unit of output than indigenous breeds. Supporting farmers through targeted breeding programmes and technological tools such as sensors that monitor digestion and feed efficiency, can greatly enhance productivity while curbing emissions. Centralised, enclosed farms allow for improved management and monitoring, integrating sustainability into the production process itself.
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Climate-smart livestock sector’s blueprint
A SUSTAINABLE vision for Bangladesh’s livestock industry must be holistic. Farms should not only produce milk and meat but also generate energy from biogas and organic fertiliser for agriculture, closing the loop of production and resource use. Under a carbon finance framework, every emission saved becomes a revenue source, turning climate responsibility into economic opportunity.
This blueprint will depend on close collaboration among farmers, scientists, entrepreneurs and both government and non-governmental actors. Through collective action, the sector can achieve large-scale methane reduction, waste-to-energy transformation and sustainable food production; all while improving rural livelihoods and national resilience.
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Global successes
THE integration of livestock systems into carbon markets is already a proven reality across regions, providing a roadmap for Bangladesh.
In East Africa, an initiative supported by the Green Climate Fund across Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania successfully reduces greenhouse gas emissions from dairy farming through improved feed, manure management and irrigation. The resulting carbon credits are sold on international markets, with revenues reinvested as direct incentives for farmers, creating a sustainable cycle of climate and economic benefit.
In Cambodia, the government authorised AgCoTech under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement to issue three million carbon credits. The company provides feed additives known as ‘lick blocks’ free to small-scale farmers; in return, it claims the corresponding carbon credits. This model breaks down the initial cost barriers that often prevent low-income farmers from adopting climate-friendly technologies.
Bangladesh itself has experience in carbon monetisation. The Infrastructure Development Company Limited registered its first Clean Development Mechanism project with the UNFCCC in 2006 and has since earned over $16 million from selling 2.53 million carbon credits, primarily from improved cookstoves and solar home systems. Thousands of biodigesters have already been installed nationwide through them. Linking these existing systems with internationally recognised carbon standards such as the Gold Standard’s small-scale biogas projects presents an immediate and realistic opportunity for the livestock sector to join global carbon markets.
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Path forward
ESTABLISHING a national carbon credit market for livestock is more than a climate strategy; it is a socioeconomic transformation. By addressing the sector’s dual challenge, as both an emitter and a victim of climate change, Bangladesh can lay the groundwork for a low-carbon, high-opportunity rural economy.
This transition will require a strong regulatory framework, institutional capacity-building, and cross-sector coordination. But the rewards are far-reaching: higher farmer income, better waste management, cleaner energy and measurable reductions in greenhouse gases. If guided by the principles of transparency, equity and innovation, Bangladesh can emerge as a regional leader in climate-smart agriculture.
Ultimately, the journey towards a resilient and sustainable food future will depend on working hand in hand, from policymakers in Dhaka to smallholders on the chars. Together, they can shape a livestock sector that nourishes people, protects the planet and embodies the very essence of World Food Day’s call: better foods and a better future for all.
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SM Rajiur Rahman is a national consultant of World Bank Group’s low carbon emission and climate finance project.
