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The potential of Lemna minor to valorise agricultural wastewater into a protein-rich feed component to meet the growing demand for animal feed protein and reduce the excess of nutrients in certain European regions was investigated. Three pilot-scale systems were monitored for nine weeks under outdoor conditions in Flanders. The systems were fed with a mixture of the liquid fraction and the biological effluent of a swine manure treatment system diluted with rainwater in order that the weekly N and P addition was equal to the N and P removal by the system. The design tested the accumulation of elements in a continuous recirculation system. Potassium, Cl, S, Ca, and Mg were abundantly available in the swine manure wastewaters and tended to accumulate, being a possible cause of concern for long-operating recirculation systems. The harvested duckweed was characterised for its mineral composition and protein content. In animal husbandry, trace elements are specifically added to animal feed as micronutrients and, thus, feedstuffs biofortified with essential trace elements can provide added value. Duckweed grown on the tested mixture of swine manure waste streams could be considered as a source of Mn, Zn, and Fe for swine feed, while it is not a source of Cu for swine feed. Moreover, it was observed that As, Cd, and Pb content were below the limits of the feed Directive 2002/32/EC in the duckweed grown on the tested medium. Overall, these results demonstrate that duckweed can effectively remove nutrients from agriculture wastewaters in a recirculated system while producing a feed source with a protein content of 35% DM.
Reindert Devlamynck; Marcella de Souza; Jan Leenknegt; Liesbeth Jacxsens; Mia Eeckhout; Erik Meers. Lemna minor Cultivation for Treating Swine Manure and Providing Micronutrients for Animal Feed. Plants 2021, 10, 1124 .
AMA StyleReindert Devlamynck, Marcella de Souza, Jan Leenknegt, Liesbeth Jacxsens, Mia Eeckhout, Erik Meers. Lemna minor Cultivation for Treating Swine Manure and Providing Micronutrients for Animal Feed. Plants. 2021; 10 (6):1124.
Chicago/Turabian StyleReindert Devlamynck; Marcella de Souza; Jan Leenknegt; Liesbeth Jacxsens; Mia Eeckhout; Erik Meers. 2021. "Lemna minor Cultivation for Treating Swine Manure and Providing Micronutrients for Animal Feed." Plants 10, no. 6: 1124.
This study investigated the potential of Lemna minor to valorise agricultural wastewater in protein-rich feed material in order to meet the growing demand for animal feed protein and reduce the excess of nutrients in certain European regions. For this purpose, three pilot-scale systems were monitored for 175 days under outdoor conditions in Flanders. The systems were fed with the effluent of aquaculture (pikeperch production—PP), a mixture of diluted pig manure wastewater (PM), and a synthetic medium (SM). PM showed the highest productivity (6.1 ± 2.5 g DW m−2 d−1) and N uptake (327 ± 107 mg N m−2 d−1). PP yielded a similar productivity and both wastewaters resulted in higher productivities than SM. Furthermore, all media showed similar P uptake rates (65–70 P m−2 d−1). Finally, duckweed had a beneficial amino acid composition for humans (essential amino acid index = 1.1), broilers and pigs. This study also showed that the growing medium had more influence on the productivity of duckweed than on its amino acid composition or protein content, with the latter being only slightly affected by the different media studied. Overall, these results demonstrate that duckweed can effectively remove nutrients from agriculture wastewaters while producing quality protein.
Reindert Devlamynck; Marcella Fernandes de Souza; Evi Michels; Ivona Sigurnjak; Natalia Donoso; Carl Coudron; Jan Leenknegt; Pieter Vermeir; Mia Eeckhout; Erik Meers. Agronomic and Environmental Performance of Lemnaminor Cultivated on Agricultural Wastewater Streams—A Practical Approach. Sustainability 2021, 13, 1570 .
AMA StyleReindert Devlamynck, Marcella Fernandes de Souza, Evi Michels, Ivona Sigurnjak, Natalia Donoso, Carl Coudron, Jan Leenknegt, Pieter Vermeir, Mia Eeckhout, Erik Meers. Agronomic and Environmental Performance of Lemnaminor Cultivated on Agricultural Wastewater Streams—A Practical Approach. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (3):1570.
Chicago/Turabian StyleReindert Devlamynck; Marcella Fernandes de Souza; Evi Michels; Ivona Sigurnjak; Natalia Donoso; Carl Coudron; Jan Leenknegt; Pieter Vermeir; Mia Eeckhout; Erik Meers. 2021. "Agronomic and Environmental Performance of Lemnaminor Cultivated on Agricultural Wastewater Streams—A Practical Approach." Sustainability 13, no. 3: 1570.
Duckweed is a potential alternative protein source for food and feed. However, little is known about the nitrate accumulation in this plant. A high nitrate level in vegetables can indirectly lead to an elevated intake of nitrites and N-nitroso compounds, increasing the risk of diseases for humans and animals. This research hypothesizes that the nitrate accumulation of Lemna minor differs between growing media. Additionally, it evaluates whether legal safety levels of nitrate for human and animal intake are exceeded. The duckweed was grown on (i) rainwater, and (ii) three synthetic media containing different nutrient levels. Furthermore, (iii) biological effluent of swine manure treatment and (iv) aquaculture effluent from pikeperch production were used, as these are potential media for closing nutrient loops in the agriculture sector. It was found that nitrate levels increased with the increasing availability of macronutrients in the water, and pH showed a particularly strong negative correlation with the nitrate levels in the plant. Nevertheless, nitrate content never exceeded 530 mg NO3 kg−1 fresh weight. To conclude, Lemna minor's nitrate content was below safety limits for human consumption in all tested growing media; however, a potential risk for ruminants was observed as these are more sensitive to nitrate conversions in their gastro-intestinal track.
Reindert Devlamynck; Marcella Fernandes de Souza; Manuela Bog; Jan Leenknegt; Mia Eeckhout; Erik Meers. Effect of the growth medium composition on nitrate accumulation in the novel protein crop Lemna minor. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 2020, 206, 111380 .
AMA StyleReindert Devlamynck, Marcella Fernandes de Souza, Manuela Bog, Jan Leenknegt, Mia Eeckhout, Erik Meers. Effect of the growth medium composition on nitrate accumulation in the novel protein crop Lemna minor. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety. 2020; 206 ():111380.
Chicago/Turabian StyleReindert Devlamynck; Marcella Fernandes de Souza; Manuela Bog; Jan Leenknegt; Mia Eeckhout; Erik Meers. 2020. "Effect of the growth medium composition on nitrate accumulation in the novel protein crop Lemna minor." Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 206, no. : 111380.