SEATTLE — Algae burgers and other foods produced from marine aquaculture could feed the world and help save the planet at the same time, a new study explains. The green substance, full of protein and vitamins, holds the key to combating climate change, according to scientists in the United States.
Researchers believe that algae can meet food needs while reducing the ecological footprint of farming.
“Agriculture provides the backbone of today’s global food production system; however, its potential to meet the world’s nutritional needs by 2050 is limited. Marine microalgae can help fill projected nutritional gaps while simultaneously improving overall environmental sustainability and ocean health,” said lead author Dr. Charles Greene from Washington University in a media release.
The global population will reach nearly 10 billion within the next three decades. Each degree of warming can reduce the output of plants by up to a quarter. Prolonged droughts or floods can make the problem worse. It is estimated that agricultural production will need to double in the next 30 years to meet demand.
“By developing an integrated, circular economy approach to the cultivation of marine microalgae we can close the human nutrition gap projected for 2050 and simultaneously reduce the many negative impacts of our current system of food production in the climate and the global environment,” said Dr. Greene, according to a SWNS statement.
How does algae supplement normal food?
Their study calls for more investment in algae aquaculture systems to meet consumer demand. With climate change making livestock raising less sustainable, algae farming as an alternative to meat holds promise for developing new ways to produce protein for human consumption. . Farming and fishing are bad for the climate, soil, lakes, rivers, streams, and biodiversity, according to the group. They suggest shifting the focus of the food chain to microalgae, which are abundant in freshwater and marine aquatic systems.
Although only a few micrometers in size, it produces amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, polymers, and carbohydrates. Only a few of the species are currently used commercially, but hundreds of strains have the potential to be a source of food and feed. Small plants have been used as a food ingredient, supplements, and as aquafeed for fish.
“We have always known that the high productivity of marine microalgae can help us reduce the carbon and land footprints of agriculture,” said Dr. Greene of SWNS. “However, the unexpected surprise is how much protein can be extracted from a small footprint in the non-fertile, coastal soils of the Global South. The implications of our results for sustainable -progress much deeper.”
Algae farming requires a fraction of resources
To fight global hunger and increase food security, demand for crops such as soybeans – widely used as animal feed – is expected to increase by 80 percent by 2050. Soybean production requires a lot of water. and drives deforestation in South America, which leads to more environmental damage.
Producing one kilogram of beef-sourced essential amino acids requires 148,000 liters of fresh water and 125 square meters of fertile land. The equivalent microalgae grown in an open pond requires only 20 liters of fresh water and 1.6 square meters of infertile soil.
“The financial difficulties facing a new marine microalgae-based aquaculture industry will be tough because it will have to challenge incumbent industries for market share before those are fully mature. its technology and it will achieve full benefits of scale. Financial investments and market incentives provided by state and federal governments will help reduce this green premium to level the playing field. .The future role of algae-based solutions in achieving global food security and environmental sustainability will depend on the actions taken by governments today,” write the authors of the study.
Microalgae can provide many nutritional proteins, essential amino acids, as well as other micronutrients, such as vitamins and antioxidants. In addition, the aquaculture industry based on marine microalgae does not require land and fresh water or pollute the freshwater and marine ecosystem through fertilizer runoff.
The UN has warned that rising temperatures, extreme weather, and soil degradation due to climate change will wipe out crops and livestock – causing global shortages. Contemporary food systems are depleting the biosphere by destroying soils and polluting groundwater, leading to deforestation and habitat fragmentation.
“Our window of time to solve these global challenges is narrow, and the solutions are on a scale that our policy makers have difficulty even imagining, especially investing in,” Dr. . Greene concluded. “The future of algae-based solutions to achieving global food security and environmental sustainability will depend on the actions taken by the investment community and governments today.”
The study was published in the journal PLoS Biology.
South West News Service writer Mark Waghorn contributed to this report.
