ARTICLE 46 Alternative Proteins Magazine April 2024 “Similar to livestock production, the top two impact hotspots in BSF production are energy and feed, indicating that using a clean energy mix, and making efficiencies and optimising feed formulae for the BSF will make the biggest saving in emissions, which can then be passed on to feed manufacturers and animal producers.” It is well reported that livestock production, especially ruminants, has a significant negative impact on the environment, both locally and globally. It is also well noted that as the forecasted population and demographic changes materialise, the global population will consume more, not less meat. The implications this has for both local environments around livestock farms (through land usage change, water eutrophication, etc) and the global environment (Global Warming Potential, water acidification, etc) are massive. 80% of global land use is attributed to livestock (mostly through the production of feedstock), which in turn causes land degradation, biodiversity loss, and air quality deterioration, making the search for less impactful sources of feed increasingly urgent. In parallel to the growth of the livestock industry, the science behind measuring environmental impact through Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) has become more reliable, and the ability to report on environmental impact is fast approaching the demand for increased transparency in the food supply chain. Global databases like The Environmental Footprint (EF) database from SimaPro, and standardised methodologies such as the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) developed by the European Commission over the last decade have made it infinitely easier to compare and contrast products. This in turn, has enabled businesses around the world to identify both their key categories of concern (GHG emissions, land usage change, water usage, etc), as well as their ’hotspots’ - where the bulk of their own impact is coming from. These two data points facilitate a clearer understanding of the impact being made, and the prioritisation of the inputs or processes to make the biggest reductions therein. At a very high level, academic studies into livestock production conclude two things; that feed is one of the major contributors to climate impact, and that the protein source is the biggest contributor within the feed. With this in mind, livestock feed producers can make a number of simple adjustments to reduce their own environmental impact by focusing on the key impact areas of; energy, and protein in feed. Solar power is already becoming commonplace in INSECT MEAL AS A TOOL FOR REDUCING THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION Nick Piggott Co-Founder and Co-CEO Nutrition Technologies
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