Scion microbial biotech team lead Christophe Collet, Upflow's Andy Blair and Andrew Marsh, and Scion's Marc Gaugler, Tasman van der Woude, and Carla Cronje. Photo: SUPPLIED/Scion
A new project is looking at creating animal feed from the greenhouse gas emissions that come from geothermal power stations.
Over the next four years, geothermal consultancy firm Upflow will work to develop technology to make livestock feed from methane and carbon dioxide emissions.
Crown research institute Scion will accommodate the research in its office in Rotorua, a city well known for its geothermal activity.
The project had nearly $5 million of co-funding from central North Island Māori trust Tauhara North No 2 and the Ministry for Primary Industries' Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures Fund.
It was believed to be a world-first in pioneering biomass feedstock from the gases at geothermal sites.
"We are taking greenhouse gases and making food from it - so feeding people, feeding animals and taking their carbon out of the atmosphere," Andy Blair, Upflow director of business and innovation, said.
Blair said only small quantities had been cultivated and tested - but the early-stage research was promising. She said the protein-rich biomass was made up of several potentially commercially valuable components - like protein for livestock feed.
Native extremophilic microalgae growing from carbon dioxide and light in a 1L bioreactor. Photo: Stephen Parker stephenparker.co.
"These are proteins that act like animal proteins, but they're not animal proteins. So that means they're really good for muscle growth and other interesting things that people take protein powder for, like get gains in the gym. These proteins can provide a substitute for that."
She said they wanted to aid low-carbon food production by using Aotearoa's abundant geothermal resources.
"We know it's not going to probably replace bulk industry feed because we probably won't be able to make enough to do that, but we know it has meaningful components that might be added to feeds that make them better for animals or replaces some of that imported [feed]."
The biotechnology processes were developed by researchers at the University of Canterbury, Scion's biotech team and the TauharaNorth Number 2 Trust.
Biomass produced by an extremophilic bacterium that consumes methane and dry biomasses produced by extremophilic microalgae. Photo: SUPPLIED/Christophe Collet
MPI director of investment programmes Steve Penno said it was an exciting project with huge potential.
"If successful, this could be the start of a new biomass feedstock manufacturing industry for New Zealand, worth an estimated $500 million per annum by 2045, creating new skilled jobs.
"It would reduce our reliance on imported livestock feed and decarbonise these industries, while also reducing the cost of carbon emissions for geothermal companies that adopt the system."
It partnered with poultry giant Inghams Enterprises to provide insights into their feed markets - as they worked out which markets would benefit, including agriculture, aquaculture and even human nutrition.
Scion spokesperson Marc Gaugler said it was an example of "visionary" people taking risks and collaborating to incubate emerging scientific insights.
"We're giving this technology the time and support it needs to be shaped for commercial reality."
Another project will use similar technologies to produce protein from microalgae, run by Cawthron Institute, Newfish and Kernohan Engineering investigating the potential of New Zealand microalgae for incorporating into human food.