The Potential of Locally-Sourced European Protein Sources for Organic Monogastric Production: A Review of Forage Crop Extracts, Seaweed, Starfish, Mussel, and Insects

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Authors have done a remarkable work by summarising all the knowledge available to find a sustainable feedstock for the future of monogastric farming.

A few comments thta can help to improve the manuscript, in my opinion:

in fig 1, highlight the boxes dealing with topics that are addresses by the manuscript.

I would have been interesting to read a discussion of how the cultivation of this feedstock material can be performed in urban environments, e.g. rooftops cultivations, algae grown in bags in basements, or similar.

the addition of a table with pro/cons|opportunities/limitations of each option considered for protein feedstock can help to summarise. the features of an 'ideal' source should also be highlighted.

The manuscript seeks a solution valid worldwide but a more local answer might be feasible. it would be beneficial to show these aspects onto a map. The comments are already present in the text.

For which organism is the concept of EAA adapterd to?

It would be interesting to read statement on the influence of  seasonality on the quality of the protein materials explored.

The long tables 1,2,3 and cmilar would benefit from a coloring of the cells by intensity, e.g. in a sort of heat-map fashion, to allow easier comparison.

Explain abbreviation is Table 6. 

Check headings in table 9.

Author Response

Please see the attachment. 

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 2 Report

This a very complete review about an important and current topic. The authors go in depth in the study of the alternative protein sources for organic monogastric animals.

In my opinion, only the introduction (sections 1 and 2) requires major revision. There are minor changes in the resting manuscript. Please, avoid padding, it is not necessary to write 4-5 pages to introduce the topic.

Comments for author File: Comments.pdf

Author Response

Please see the attachment

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

Dear Authors,

Thanks for your positive answers and congratulations for your paper.

As you say it is not expected that there are large differences in the nutrient composition between organic and conventionally produced raw materials. Soya is a clear exception. Mäder et al. 2007 is a very good reference as example. I suggest to explain that and to include this reference as example.

Yours respectfully