Challenges facing sustainable protein production: Opportunities for cereals

Safdar, Luqman B; Foulkes, M John; Kleiner, Friedrich H; Searle, Iain R; Bhosale, Rahul A; Fisk, Ian D; Boden, Scott A

Abstract

Rising demands for protein worldwide are likely to drive increases in livestock production, as meat provides ∼40% of dietary protein. This will come at a significant environmental cost, and a shift toward plant-based protein sources would therefore provide major benefits. While legumes provide substantial amounts of plant-based protein, cereals are the major constituents of global foods, with wheat alone accounting for 15–20% of the required dietary protein intake. Improvement of protein content in wheat is limited by phenotyping challenges, lack of genetic potential of modern germplasms, negative yield trade-offs, and environmental costs of nitrogen fertilizers. Presenting wheat as a case study, we discuss how increasing protein content in cereals through a revised breeding strategy combined with robust phenotyping could ensure a sustainable protein supply while minimizing the environmental impact of nitrogen fertilizer.

Citation

Safdar, L. B., Foulkes, M. J., Kleiner, F. H., Searle, I. R., Bhosale, R. A., Fisk, I. D., & Boden, S. A. (2023). Challenges facing sustainable protein production: Opportunities for cereals. Plant Communications, 4(6), Article 100716. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xplc.2023.100716

• Journal Article Type: Review
• Acceptance Date: Sep 11, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Sep 14, 2023
• Publication Date: Nov 13, 2023
• Deposit Date: Sep 21, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 21, 2023
• Journal: Plant Communications
• Print ISSN: 2590-3462
• Electronic ISSN: 2590-3462
• Publisher: Elsevier (Cell Press)
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 4
• Issue: 6
• Article Number: 100716
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xplc.2023.100716
• Keywords: Sustainability, Protein nutrition, Grain protein content, Innovative breeding
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/25366028
• Publisher URL: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590346223002626?via%3Dihub