{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,19]],"date-time":"2026-06-19T05:51:11Z","timestamp":1781848271277,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":44,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,16]],"date-time":"2026-06-16T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1781568000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Plants"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Duckweed (Lemnaceae) is a promising alternative feed crop, particularly in regions with nutrient surpluses and protein deficits, as it grows efficiently on nutrient-rich agricultural wastewater and provides protein-rich biomass. However, its high moisture content and rapid post-harvest spoilage pose major storage challenges. This study evaluated (co-)ensiling as a cost-effective preservation strategy for duckweed. Three separate experiments were conducted to assess the ensilability of duckweed alone and in combination with various agricultural co-substrates and additives, including corn silage, beet pulp, grass silage, hemp shives, hay, molasses, sun-dried duckweed and CaCO3. Duckweed alone could not be successfully ensiled due to excessive moisture, resulting in poor acidification and high levels of undesirable fermentation products. During the long-term co-ensiling test, a duckweed\u2013corn silage mixture containing 29% fresh duckweed and 71% corn silage showed the most stable fermentation profile, with low pH, limited fermentation losses, and no detectable butyric acid. A duckweed\u2013grass silage mixture containing 51% fresh duckweed and 49% grass silage allowed higher duckweed inclusion and retained the highest level of apparent pepsin-digestible protein after storage, but showed elevated acetic acid and ethanol concentrations. A duckweed\u2013beet pulp mixture containing 74% fresh duckweed and 26% beet pulp enabled the highest duckweed inclusion rate, but showed signs of clostridial fermentation, likely due to excess moisture. Microbiological analysis of this beet pulp mixture showed reduced Enterobacteriaceae after ensiling, but also increased clostridial counts. Oxalic acid concentrations were low in all duckweed-based silages, with the largest reduction observed in the duckweed\u2013grass mixture. Overall, the results show that duckweed co-ensiling is feasible but highly dependent on co-substrate selection and moisture control. Further formulation optimisation is required, particularly for high-duckweed mixtures, to reduce the risk of clostridial fermentation and improve practical applicability as a storable feed ingredient.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/plants15121865","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,17]],"date-time":"2026-06-17T01:58:38Z","timestamp":1781661518000},"page":"1865","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Evaluating Co-Ensiling Strategies to Valorise Duckweed as a Sustainable Feed Ingredient"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4575-1794","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marie","family":"Lambert","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory for Bioresource Recovery, Department of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9943-5172","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Eva","family":"Wambacq","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Centre AgroFoodNature, School of Bioscience and Industrial Technology, University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Valentin Vaerwyckweg 1, 9000 Ghent, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2121-2822","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Reindert","family":"Devlamynck","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Provincial Research and Advice Centre for Agriculture and Horticulture (Inagro vzw), Ieperseweg 87, 8800 Roeselare-Beitem, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4435-9221","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marcella","family":"Fernandes de Souza","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory for Bioresource Recovery, Department of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8813-0288","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Pieter","family":"Vermeir","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory for Chemical Analysis (LCA), Department of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Valentin Vaerwyckweg 1, 9000 Ghent, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2382-120X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Katleen","family":"Raes","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Unit VEG-i-TEC, Department of Food Technology, Safety and Health, Campus Kortrijk, Ghent University, St-Martems Latemlaan 2B, 8500 Kortrijk, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8537-5084","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mia","family":"Eeckhout","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Unit of Cereal and Feed Technology, Department of Food Technology, Safety and Health, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8296-3462","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Erik","family":"Meers","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Centre AgroFoodNature, School of Bioscience and Industrial Technology, University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Valentin Vaerwyckweg 1, 9000 Ghent, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,16]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Devlamynck, R., de Souza, M.F., Leenknegt, J., Jacxsens, L., Eeckhout, M., and Meers, E. 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