Ireland opens US$3.4M grass biorefinery to produce high-protein animal feed

IRELAND – Ireland has opened its first on-farm grass biorefinery and anaerobic digestion plant, a €3 million (US$3.47 million) facility designed to turn fresh grass into high-protein animal feed, fibre products, renewable energy and biofertiliser.

The demonstration plant at Shinagh Estates in County Cork is part of the Farm Zero C project and will test how Ireland’s abundant grass resources can be used to produce multiple products instead of relying solely on direct livestock feeding.

The facility will separate fresh grass into a protein-rich juice stream and a fibre-rich press cake. 

The protein can be recovered for use as animal feed, while the fibre fraction can be used in livestock feed and other applications.

The technology could also provide a new source of locally produced protein for monogastric animals such as pigs and poultry. 

EU Protein Action Plan has identified grass protein extraction as one route to reducing dependence on imported protein feed.

Turning grass into higher-value feed

Ireland has some of Europe’s most productive grassland, but grass has traditionally been used primarily as feed for grazing livestock. 

Green biorefining could expand its role by extracting protein and other components while retaining feed value in the remaining fibre.

The new facility will operate at pre-commercial scale to generate data on product quality, operating performance, costs and potential business models. 

This evidence will be used to assess whether the technology can be deployed more widely across grassland farming regions.

The project builds on nearly a decade of research into grass biorefining involving Munster Technological University, University College Dublin, Carbery Group and other partners. 

Earlier trials by Carbery found that grass could be processed into cattle feed fibre and a protein concentrate for monogastric animals, among other products.

The facility will also support the EU-funded Rural BioReFarmeries project, which is assessing whether decentralised grass biorefineries can be replicated across European grassland regions.

Carbery previously identified the project as an €8.7 million(US$10.1 million) initiative focused on developing farmer-centred bioeconomy models.

After the feed and fibre fractions are extracted, the remaining material can enter anaerobic digestion to produce renewable energy and nutrient-rich material that could be used as biofertiliser.

The demonstration therefore links feed production with energy and nutrient recovery, creating a circular model around grass biomass.

For the feed sector, the project could offer a new pathway for producing domestic protein ingredients while creating additional value from Ireland’s grassland resources. 

It also aligns with European efforts to reduce reliance on imported feed proteins and strengthen regional supply chains.

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