According to the companies, grass protein is a suitable alternative to soy, an ingredient now commonly used in meat substitutes. Schouten Europe and Grassa will be researching and testing the potential uses of grass protein in meat substitutes in the coming years.

“Grass protein has massive potential,” says Rieks Smook, director of Grassa. “Grass yields 2.5 times as much protein per hectare as soy. Grass supplies are readily available. Grass protein is a high-quality, local and scalable alternative to soy. When compared to other protein sources, it provides a huge reduction in the carbon footprint.”

Less nitrogen

“A cow converts only 30% of the grass protein into milk and meat. Seventy percent is converted into manure. Grassa removes some of the excess proteins from the grass beforehand. The residual product, processed grass, is eaten by the cow. In this way, the protein in grass is optimally utilised,” says Smook.

In addition to extracting 50% more protein from the same hectare of land, the nitrogen problem is also tackled at the source. The import of soy is replaced by grass protein and because of less protein in the processed grass, the cows emit less nitrogen (ammonia).

Protein transition

The term protein transition refers to the shift from the consumption of animal proteins to (more) vegetable and alternative proteins. “As a pioneer and innovator in the meat substitute market, we are always looking for interesting protein sources that can contribute to the protein transition,” says Henk Schouten, owner of Schouten Europe.

“We are very interested in protein from grass,” continues Schouten. “It is our ambition to use sustainable and local ingredients in our products. The partnership with Grassa is, therefore, a great step for our company. In the coming years, our product developers will investigate the applicability of grass protein in meat substitutes together with Grassa.”

Smook of Grassa adds, “We already collaborate within the animal feed sector and are very pleased that we have found an exclusive partner in Schouten Europe for the application of grass protein in human nutrition.”

Courtesy of Bizcommunity – read full article here.