Researchers have studied the cost-effectiveness of growing halophytes -- salt-tolerant plant species -- for animal forage  Halophytes require more water than conventional crops, but can be irrigated with seawater, and pumping seawater into farms near sea level is much cheaper than pumping freshwater from deep wells
Thus, seawater agriculture near sea level should be cost-effective in desert regions although its yields are smaller than traditional, freshwater agriculture
A given volume of halophytes is significantly different in nutritional value for animal forage from the same volume of conventional forage crops.