Precision fermentation suggested as ‘humanity’s last hope’

In an op-ed for the Guardian, writer George Monbiot suggests that precision fermentation, a method of multiplying microbes that has been used for many years to produce drugs and food additives, could become the basis for a new kind of staple food.

“The microbes they breed feed on hydrogen or methanol – which can be made with renewable electricity – combined with water, carbon dioxide and a very small amount of fertilizer. They produce a flour that contains roughly 60% protein, a much higher concentration than any major crop can achieve (soybeans contain 37%, chickpeas 20%). When they are bred to produce specific proteins and fats, they can create much better replacements than plant products for meat, fish, milk and eggs.”

Potential sustainability impact

Food production is one of the most environmentally impactful processes on the planet, and is responsible for a large proportion of environmental damage. Precision fermentation using methanol needs 1,700 times less land than the most efficient agricultural means of producing protein – soy grown in the US. This suggests it might use, respectively, 138,000 and 157,000 times less land than beef and lamb production, which are the least efficient means. At the same time, since the process is contained, it avoids the spillover of waste and chemicals into the wider world caused by farming.

“The real sticking point, I believe, is neophobia. I know people who won’t own a microwave oven, as they believe it will damage their health (it doesn’t), but who do own a wood-burning stove, which does. We defend the old and revile the new. Much of the time, it should be the other way around.”