Bog
Butter
A 3,500-year-old Irish tradition reimagined as a protein-packed sweet treat from native duckweed — born from the bog, approved by Europe.
From bronze age bogs
to a new food
For at least 3,500 years, the people of Ireland buried butter in peat bogs. The cool, acidic, oxygen-starved ground preserved it for months, years, even millennia. Archaeologists still pull these pale, waxy lumps from the earth — the oldest dating to 1700 BC. Some were food stores; others, offerings to whatever held the bog sacred. Butter was currency, sustenance, and ritual.
Now that ancient logic — food sustained by the bog — returns in a wholly new form. Duckweed, Lemna minor, has floated on Irish ponds, lakes, and bog pools for thousands of years, a native plant so small it rarely warranted a second glance. But it contains up to 40% protein by dry weight, all nine essential amino acids, and is rich in vitamins A, B12, iron, and zinc. It reproduces by simply dividing in two, doubling its biomass every 48 hours. From this plant, a highly functional protein extract — RuBisCO, the most abundant protein on Earth — can be isolated: clean, neutral in flavour, and with a digestibility score comparable to eggs.
In January 2025, the European Commission formally approved Lemna minor and Lemna gibba for human consumption under Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/153, following nearly a decade of research led by Wageningen University & Research. At University College Cork, Professor Marcel Jansen’s Duck-Feed project has been pioneering the cultivation of an Irish-native clone — Lemna minor “Blarney”, collected in the south of Ireland in 2010 — developing the knowledge to grow duckweed sustainably using farm waste streams and circular economy principles.
Bog Butter is the first product of Bog Bia, a food line built on this convergence: Ireland’s deep relationship with the bog, its native duckweed, and the science that makes it all possible. The name carries the ancient tradition forward — sustenance preserved, transformed, and shared, as it always was. The butter, the bog, the bia — food — are reunited.
Europe’s newest food
is Ireland’s oldest plant
Duckweed has been studied as a protein source for decades in Southeast Asia, but it took a landmark EU ruling and pioneering Irish research to bring it to European tables. Here is what makes it remarkable.
Protein Powerhouse
Up to 40% protein by dry weight with a complete amino acid profile meeting WHO standards — even for infant nutrition. The isolated protein extract, RuBisCO, achieves a digestibility score comparable to eggs.
EU Novel Food Approved
Commission Regulation (EU) 2025/153, adopted 29 January 2025, authorises Lemna minor and Lemna gibba for the EU market. Safety confirmed by EFSA after extensive evaluation.
Radically Sustainable
No arable land required. Six times more protein per hectare than soy. Doubles in biomass every 48 hours. Can be cultivated vertically, indoors, year-round — even on the International Space Station.
Irish-Led Research
UCC’s Duck-Feed project, led by Prof. Marcel Jansen, cultivates the native Lemna minor “Blarney” clone, developing aquatic growth media from farm waste — circular economy in action.
Rich Micronutrients
High in vitamins A and B12, iron, zinc, calcium, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and dietary fibre. Its taste has been described as mild, plant-like, with subtle nutty notes.
Water, Not Soil
Grown on a thin layer of water in closed systems. 90% less water per kilogram of protein than traditional crops. No pesticides. Absorbs CO&sub2; and produces oxygen.
From Bronze Age to Bog Bia
Introducing Bog Butter
The Irish buried butter in bogs for 3,500 years. This is what comes next.
Bog Butter carries forward Ireland’s oldest food tradition. For millennia, the bog preserved what mattered most — now it gives rise to something new. This is a protein-packed confection powered by a protein extract from Lemna minor — common duckweed, native to Ireland. RuBisCO, the most abundant protein in nature, is isolated from the plant to deliver a complete amino acid profile in a form you’d actually want to reach for.
Think of it as where a fudge meets a protein bite: smooth, satisfying, and subtly nutty. No dairy, no soy, no common allergens — just concentrated plant protein wrapped in something sweet enough to feel like a reward.
Bog Butter is the first product in the Bog Bia line — a range of foods rooted in Irish provenance, native ingredients, and the science of a sustainable future. More to follow.
Rooted in Ireland,
grown for Europe
Bog Bia sources from Ireland’s west coast and midlands, where duckweed has grown wild for millennia and where a new generation of cultivation is taking root in partnership with research institutions and coastal communities.
Circular Economy
Duckweed cultivation valorises agricultural waste streams, turning nutrient-rich run-off into high-protein biomass while cleaning water.
No Land Required
Grown on water in closed systems — greenhouses, vertical farms, even repurposed peatland — without competing for arable soil.
Year-Round Harvest
Indoor cultivation with LED lighting produces consistent yields even in Irish winters, as demonstrated by UCC’s research programmes.
A Note on the Claim
Bog Butter takes its name from Ireland’s 3,500-year tradition of bog-preserved dairy — reimagined here as a protein-rich confection. It is Europe’s first direct-to-consumer food product made with protein extracted from Lemna minor (common duckweed).
Duckweed has been eaten for centuries in Southeast Asia, where Wolffia globosa (a different genus) was approved by the EU in 2021 as a traditional food. In January 2025, whole Lemna plants were approved under Regulation (EU) 2025/153, following an earlier April 2024 approval for Lemna-derived protein concentrate under Regulation (EU) 2024/1048. While B2B duckweed protein ingredients exist in the US market, as of early 2026 no finished consumer food product using Lemna protein extract has been brought to market in Europe — making Bog Butter the first of its kind.