Final published version
Licence: CC BY: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - European soybean to benefit people and the environment
AU - Rotundo, Jose L.
AU - Marshall, Rachel
AU - McCormick, Ryan
AU - Truong, Sandra K.
AU - Styles, David
AU - Gerde, Jose A.
AU - Gonzalez-Escobar, Emmanuel
AU - Carmo-Silva, Elizabete
AU - Janes-Bassett, Victoria
AU - Logue, Jennifer
AU - Annicchiarico, Paolo
AU - de Visser, Chris
AU - Dind, Alice
AU - Dodd, Ian C.
AU - Dye, Louise
AU - Long, Stephen P.
AU - Lopes, Marta S.
AU - Pannecoucque, Joke
AU - Reckling, Moritz
AU - Rushton, Jonathan
AU - Schmid, Nathaniel
AU - Shield, Ian
AU - Signor, Marco
AU - Messina, Carlos D.
AU - Rufino, Mariana C.
PY - 2024/3/31
Y1 - 2024/3/31
N2 - Europe imports large amounts of soybean that are predominantly used for livestock feed, mainly sourced from Brazil, USA and Argentina. In addition, the demand for GM-free soybean for human consumption is project to increase. Soybean has higher protein quality and digestibility than other legumes, along with high concentrations of isoflavones, phytosterols and minerals that enhance the nutritional value as a human food ingredient. Here, we examine the potential to increase soybean production across Europe for livestock feed and direct human consumption, and review possible effects on the environment and human health. Simulations and field data indicate rainfed soybean yields of 3.1 ± 1.2 t ha−1 from southern UK through to southern Europe (compared to a 3.5 t ha−1 average from North America). Drought-prone southern regions and cooler northern regions require breeding to incorporate stress-tolerance traits. Literature synthesized in this work evidenced soybean properties important to human nutrition, health, and traits related to food processing compared to alternative protein sources. While acknowledging the uncertainties inherent in any modelling exercise, our findings suggest that further integrating soybean into European agriculture could reduce GHG emissions by 37–291 Mt CO2e year−1 and fertiliser N use by 0.6–1.2 Mt year−1, concurrently improving human health and nutrition.
AB - Europe imports large amounts of soybean that are predominantly used for livestock feed, mainly sourced from Brazil, USA and Argentina. In addition, the demand for GM-free soybean for human consumption is project to increase. Soybean has higher protein quality and digestibility than other legumes, along with high concentrations of isoflavones, phytosterols and minerals that enhance the nutritional value as a human food ingredient. Here, we examine the potential to increase soybean production across Europe for livestock feed and direct human consumption, and review possible effects on the environment and human health. Simulations and field data indicate rainfed soybean yields of 3.1 ± 1.2 t ha−1 from southern UK through to southern Europe (compared to a 3.5 t ha−1 average from North America). Drought-prone southern regions and cooler northern regions require breeding to incorporate stress-tolerance traits. Literature synthesized in this work evidenced soybean properties important to human nutrition, health, and traits related to food processing compared to alternative protein sources. While acknowledging the uncertainties inherent in any modelling exercise, our findings suggest that further integrating soybean into European agriculture could reduce GHG emissions by 37–291 Mt CO2e year−1 and fertiliser N use by 0.6–1.2 Mt year−1, concurrently improving human health and nutrition.
U2 - 10.1038/s41598-024-57522-z
DO - 10.1038/s41598-024-57522-z
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 38556523
VL - 14
JO - Scientific Reports
JF - Scientific Reports
SN - 2045-2322
IS - 1
M1 - 7612
ER -