Grassa
Grassa is a Dutch agri-food technology company based in Wageningen that is developing a grass protein extraction system to turn grass into higher-value ingredients. Its model is built around existing dairy farming operations: freshly cut grass is processed locally, with protein-reduced fibre returned as feed and the extracted juice refined into ingredients for food and feed applications. The company positions grass as an underused but abundant crop that can support a more resilient and circular food system. Grassa says its approach helps farmers create more value from the grass they already grow while reducing the environmental footprint of feed and food production. It is developing and testing the technology in collaboration with Wageningen University & Research and other partners across the agricultural and food value chain. Core Values Sustainability : Grassa focuses on using existing grassland more efficiently, reducing pressure on land and ecosystems while lowering the environmental footprint of production. Circularity : Its process is designed to create multiple value streams from one harvest, returning fibre to farms and refining juice into ingredients. Local value creation : The company emphasizes local processing and local sourcing so farmers can capture more value within the region. Collaboration : Grassa presents itself as a partnership-driven company, working with farmers, researchers, public partners and industry players to scale its model. Unique Aspects Grass as a multi-purpose crop : Grassa’s core proposition is to unlock grass for both animal feed and human food, rather than treating it only as forage. Farm-integrated processing model : The system is designed to fit into current dairy farming operations, with local presses near farms and a central refinery for ingredient production. Wageningen-based development : The technology has been developed and tested on campus at Wageningen, a major food and agri innovation hub, in collaboration with Wageningen University & Research. Scale-up roadmap : Grassa states that its first pilot press started in 2024 and that a demo press is under construction for opening in spring 2026, with a longer-term plan toward full-scale refinery operations.