Beyond Agriculture─How Microorganisms Can Revolutionize Global Food Production

The global food production system has, until now, been absolutely dependent on photosynthesis. Using microbial biomass as a source of food rather than plant- or animal-derived biomass circumvents many of the biophysical constraints and vulnerabilities of the global food system. Microbial foods in the form of either bulk cellular biomass or recombinant food proteins (typically of animal origin) can be produced in the absence of sunlight, soil, favorable climate conditions, and in some cases without freshwater. This Review looks at some of the most recent developments in the field of microbial foods and discusses some of the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for this technology.