Agricultural greenhouse gas emission reporting: the implications for farm management

Concerns about the environmental and economic impacts of increasing greenhouse gas emissions, including those from agriculture, have caused many nations to commit to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. Various methodologies are used to measure and report emissions. We outline the range of metrics and discuss the rationale and limitations of their use in greenhouse gas emission reporting, especially for livestock production. We highlight how farm management is affected by the measurement metrics that are applied. On balance more complex reporting measures are more likely to usefully serve farmers, extension agents, and agricultural researchers to achieve beneficial environmental outcomes at least cost to farm businesses and governments.