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How to get pigs, chickens, and fish to eat grass

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NIBIO Director General Ivar Horneland Kristensen cuts the ribbon for NIBIOs green biorefinery facility in Steinkjer. Photo: Anette Tjomsland Spilling

Green biorefining of grass can provide Norway with domestically produced protein feed, comparable to imported soy from Brazil.

Currently, grass is mainly used directly as animal feed for cows and other ruminants. These animals have multi-compartmental stomachs that are specialized in breaking down plant fibres.

In a biorefining process, the plant material receives rough treatment in a screw press, releasing valuable nutrients from the plant cells together with the liquid fraction. This allows grass proteins to be concentrated into a protein feed that is digestible even for animals with a simple stomach, such as poultry, pigs and fish.

Montering av Norges første grønne bioraffineringsanlegg på Tuv forsøksgård i mai 2024. Foto; Haldis Kismul
Installation of Norway’s first green biorefinery facility at Tuv Research Farm in May 2024. Photo: Haldis Kismul

 

More than 50% of agricultural production in Norway is grass

NIBIO recently opened Norway’s first pilot plant for green biorefining at Tuv experimental farm in Steinkjer.

"Over 50% of agricultural production in Norway is grass. At the same time, we have a lot of seaweed along the Norwegian coast, with up to 30% protein content. We envision developing the plant along these two lines," said Audun Korsæth, Director of the Division of Food Production and Society at NIBIO, during the opening of the green biorefinery.

Korsæth emphasized that the combination of grass and algae would allow the biorefinery plant to be utilized throughout the year.

"There is a great need for new feed materials in the future, both in the fish farming industry and in chicken and other livestock production," says Gjermund Bahr, Senior Advisor in the Department of Biomarine Resource Valorisation at NIBIO. Bahr, who used to work in the aquaculture industry, points out that the biorefining process releases many nutrients that are compatible with requirements in the aquaculture industry.

Forsker Lene Stødkilde-Jørgensen fra Aarhus universitet fortalte om erfaringer fra forsøk med tilsetting av grasbasert proteinkonsentrat i dyrefôr til kylling og gris. Foto: Anette Tjomsland Spilling
During the opening of the pilot plant in Steinkjer, researcher Lene Stødkilde-Jørgensen from Aarhus University shared experiences from trials, involving the addition of grass-based protein concentrate in animal feed for chickens and pigs. Photo: Anette Tjomsland Spilling

 

Building on experience from Denmark

The pilot plant has been developed in collaboration with researchers from Aarhus University, who have already established a demonstration plant and contributed to developing two commercial plants in Denmark. The Danish researchers already have several exciting results from trials with animal feed for chickens and pigs made from Danish ley.

"In a feeding trial with pigs, we tested a concentrate based on grass with 47% crude protein. The trial showed that we can add up to 15% of this in pig feed without any issues with meat quality. In more recent trials, we’ve confirmed that soy can be replaced without problems," says researcher Lene Stødkilde-Jørgensen from Aarhus University.

Professor Søren Krogh Jensen fra Aarhus universitet ser på utstillingen av det som blir produsert fra gress ved det grønne bioraffineringsanlegget på Tuv forsøksgård i Steinkjer. Gressaft (i midten på bildet) omdannes til proteinkonsentrat som Krogh Jensen holder i til høyre i bildet. Helt til høyre står det et lite glass med kraftfôr som inneholder gressprotein. Ut av prosessen kommer det også to sidestrømmer; grasmyse (mørke væske mellom gressaft og proteinpulveret) og fiberpulp (ved siden av gresset til venstre). Krogh Jensen og kolleger ved Universitetet i Aarhus bistår NIBIO med verdifulle erfaringer fra oppbyggingen av et demonstrasjonsanlegg i Danmark. Foto: Anette Tjomsland Spilling
Professor Søren Krogh Jensen from Aarhus University examines the display of what is produced from grass at the green biorefinery facility at Tuv research farm in Steinkjer. Krogh Jensen and colleagues from Aarhus University assist NIBIO with valuable insights from establishing a demonstration plant in Denmark. Photo: Anette Tjomsland Spilling

 

Feeding trials with chickens and cattle

NIBIO is also conducting feeding trials on chickens and cattle together with partners in the project "One Crop Two Diets." Dairy cows at Mære Agricultural School in Steinkjer have been fed pulp, which is the fibrous press residue left at the end of the biorefinery process.

"We expect that the cows will produce the same amount of milk regardless of whether they are fed pulp or regular silage. However, we think cows eating pulp will need less time to ruminate in order to fully digest their feed, which could either reduce the need for concentrated feed in the dairy cow diet or result in the animals belching less and thus releasing less methane," says Haldis Kismul, Research Scientist at the Department of Grassland and Livestock in NIBIO.

Kuer under foringsforsøk på Mære landbruksskole. Forsker Ghulam Qasim Khan syrepreserverer urin for senere analyse. Avdelingsingeniør Jorid Sandvik kommer med en bøtte urin fra nye kuer. Formålet er å se på nitrogenbalansen til dyret ved å måle hvor mye som forsvinner i urinen.  Foto: Foto: Ole Andreas Vestrum
Cows during a feeding trial at Mære Agricultural School. Research Scientist Ghulam Qasim Khan acid-preserves urine for later analysis. Engineer Jorid Sandvik brings a bucket of urine from the next cow. The purpose is to examine the animal’s nitrogen balance by measuring the amount that is lost in the urine. Photo: Ole Andreas Vestrum

 

The challenges: volume, quality, and economy

However, more research is needed before feed production from green biorefinery may be economically viable. In Denmark, grass protein is still two to three times more expensive than imported soy.

"In terms of concentrated feed, we lack protein, especially for chickens. The challenge is that feed factories need large volumes of consistent quality, and we need to produce feed that is economically viable for farmers to use," says Kari Ljøkjel, Managing Director of Felleskjøpet Feed Development, one of the participants in the "One Crop Two Diets" project.

Researchers also want to explore how to create new high-value products from what remains after the most valuable protein concentrate has been extracted from the biorefinery process.

Steffen Adler, Research Scientist at the Department of Grassland and Livestock in NIBIO, and project leader for "One Crop Two Diets," is optimistic about the research opportunities that the new plant presents.

"This plant will be important for national and international research projects. It could also serve as a demonstration plant for collaboration with industry. I am very excited to see what we can achieve in the coming years."

Facts about Green Biorefining

The green biorefinery process can have various main products and several byproducts.

Green protein concentrate has great potential as a protein source for pigs, poultry, and possibly also fish. It may serve as raw material for dietary supplements, or new medicines.

Grass whey is used either as fertilizer or as raw material for biogas production. Researchers are exploring new applications, such as in the production of single-cell protein, cosmetics, dietary supplements, or pharmacology.

Fiber pulp can be used as raw material for biogas production or ensiled and used as feed for ruminants. Researchers are exploring new areas of application e.g. in construction materials, textiles, or the paper industry.

Her filtreres små fiberrester fra proteinsaft i et småskalaforsøk i lab. Foto: Steffen Adler
Here, small fibre residues are filtered from the protein juice in a small-scale lab experiment. Photo: Steffen Adler
Forsker Haldis Kismul observerer at fiberpulpen fra bioraffineringsprosessen holder seg ved rett tørrstoffinnhold Foto: Jarle Vikør Ekanger
Researcher Haldis Kismul is monitoring the dry matter content of the fibrous gras pulp as it is exiting the screw press. Photo: Jarle Vikør Ekanger
Forsker Haldis Kismul og avdelingsingeniør Jo Sjåvik i NIBIO tar blodprøver av kuer i foringsforsøk på Mære landbruksskole, for å sjekke at kuene ikke blir underernært av dietten. Foto: Ole Andreas Vestrum
Research Scientist Haldis Kismul and Engineer Jo Sjåvik from NIBIO are taking blood samples from cows in a feeding trial at Mære Agricultural School. The purpose is to monitor the animals for early warning signals for metabolic imbalances, in order to verify that cows are not in danger of being malnourished from being on the gras pulp diet. Photo: Ole Andreas Vestrum
Gjermund Bahr, seniorrådgiver i avdeling biomarin verdiskaping og Steffen Adler, forsker i avdeling fôr og husdyr i NIBIO har samarbeidet tett om oppbyggingen av det nye grønne bioraffineringsanlegget i Steinkjer. Her er de begge veldig fornøyde på åpningsdagen. Foto: Anette Tjomsland Spilling
Gjermund Bahr, Senior Advisor in the Department of Biomarine Resource Valorisation at NIBIO, and Steffen Adler, Researcher in the Department of Feed and Livestock at NIBIO, have closely collaborated on developing the new green biorefinery facility in Steinkjer. Photo: Anette Tjomsland Spilling
Forsker Haldis Kismul etterbehandler blodprøver fra foringsforsøkene på Mære. Plasma sentrifugeres og sendes videre til analyse, for å sjekke at kuene ikke blir underernært av dietten. Foto: Ole Andreas Vestrum
Researcher Haldis Kismul processes blood samples from feeding trials at Mære. Plasma is centrifuged and sent for analysis to ensure that the cows are not malnourished on the diet. Photo: Ole Andreas Vestrum