Grass as a potential protein source for human consumption

Protein is at the heart of the challenge that is feeding the world's growing population, with protein production often identified as a major culprit in the agricultural sector's environmental footprint. Novel protein sources need to be investigated in terms of nutritional potential and environmental and economic impact of production. This paper analyses the potential of processing grass into a protein-rich product that could be used directly in the human diet, instead of the current use of grass as forage feed for bovine livestock. While studies on the economic feasibility and nutritional implications of processing grass have been conducted, the farm-level outcomes have not been studied previously. Results indicate that grass could yield between 186 and 1090 kg of protein per hectare, depending on the species, against 407 kg and 51 kg per hectare for milk and beef production, respectively. Milk and beef meat production currently emits 10.27 T and 4.75 T of CO₂ equivalent per hectare, and 2.63 T and 13.01 T of CO₂ equivalent per 100 g of protein, respectively. Grass production for direct human consumption would emit between 0.39 and 0.90 T of CO₂ equivalent per hectare, and between 0.04 and 0.36 T of CO₂ equivalent per 100 g of protein. Grass prices should be set between €121 and €348 for beef farms and between €309 and €679 for dairy farms to compensate farmers for their revenue losses. In summary, processing grass into a protein-rich ingredient for direct human consumption instead of using it as animal feed allows the production of as much protein as beef meat or milk, at a significantly lower environmental cost. However, farmers will need to be adequately compensated for the change to be at least profit-neutral, and processing techniques will need to be scaled for this new protein source to be commercially viable.