One new possibility, Munchies reports, may come in the form of algae. A couple of weeks ago, Cornell University released a study on microalgae cultivation and how it could "become a top-tier contender to combat global warming, as well as energy and food insecurity." Easy to cultivate (just ask your neighbor with a pool) and with little environmental impact, algae production is easily scalable with several potential inroads into our existting food system. And it doesn't have extra legs.

Algae farming for the purpose of harvesting algae oil has already been touted as a possible alternative to ethanol biofuel. The Cornell study, as reported on by Science Daily, shows how algae can also be refined into a substance rich in protein and nutrients that could be added to feed for livestock, replacing more environmentally harmful crops like soy, but could also be eaten by humans. A food company called Parabel has allegedly developed Lentein, an algae powder that's extremely high in protein and behaves like whey powder with a grassy flavor.

What's more, algae cultivation dovetails well with global pollution trends. It's a single-celled organism that grows rapidly and can flourish in polluted waters where other plants and animals die. Replacing existing crops with algae farms could not only help feed millions of animals and act as a fertilizer, but also save billions of gallons of irrigation water every year, meaning that its production could provide food security to billions more people in an environmentally sound way.

The new promise of algae is reminiscent of another renewable, low-impact, and highly nutritious ocean-faring plant: seaweed. Duckweed is often used to feed farm animals in Europe, and a variation of the plant has been enjoyed as a common green vegetable in countries like Japan and Myanmar for a hundreds of years. Some hail it as the ultimate superfood; here's hoping algae can give it some competition.