Plant proteins

the main concern, as for the animal feed market, remains the environmental footprint. Substituting animal proteins with imported plant proteins which have travelled halfway round the planet before arriving on a plate, will only have a limited, if not negative, ecological impact.
It is therefore important to structure or to help the emergence of local plant protein sectors, by encouraging upstream agriculture to produce protein-rich crops in an economically competitive manner, and by investing in industrial efficient tools in the territories. Another important part of this equation is the efficiency of the processes for transforming raw protein materials into concentrates or isolates. Research must focus on reducing water and energy consumption and increasing recovery yields.

What are the levers to reduce the environmental footprint of plant proteins? How do we promote the development of local sectors and make transformation processes more sustainable?

Although these sources of protein have seen a renewed interest over the past decade, they currently represent only about 30% of the total protein intake of an average individual in France, while the Plan National Nutrition Santé (PNNS) recommends 50%. This observation is paradoxical: while plant proteins enjoy a positive image with consumers (mainly for environmental reasons), the current range of steaks, drinks, desserts, plant-based cheeses, etc. does not seem to fully meet their needs. Three major issues help to understand this observation:

Taste: beyond the fact that some consumers simply prefer the taste of meat or the taste of cow’s milk, plant proteins have organoleptic properties (green notes, smell of cut grass, bitterness, or astringency) which can reduce taste pleasure and thus curb purchasing.

Texture: efforts from researchers and start-ups over many years to mimic the texture of meat with animal protein are only just starting to pay off. The latest products from companies like Beyond Meat and Les Nouveaux Fermiers have an aspect that is noticeably similar to meat, but previous generations of meat substitutes were far from being so appetizing. The consumer has kept in mind the image of a “distant imitation” of the real product of animal origin.

Clean label: products formulated with plant proteins are generally penalized – compared to products of animal origin – by the presence of additives (stabilizers, texturizers, preservatives, etc.) which considerably extend the list of ingredients. However, while consumers see the presence of plants in a positive light, the presence of additives goes against their expectations in terms of naturalness.

How can we better meet consumer expectations in terms of taste, texture, and naturalness with products made from plant proteins?

The nutritional quality of plant proteins is currently and generally considered inferior to that of animal proteins. They have, on average, a lower digestability because they have deficiencies in “essential amino acids”. To overcome this barrier, research on the selection of varieties with an optimal protein composition must continue, as well as R&D on plant protein ingredients with high nutritional value and in particular with high PDCAAS (Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score), a marker of digestibility and protein quality. One of the solutions is also to combine different sources of plant protein. This is the case with Roquette, for example, which has worked extensively on the formulation of analogues to dairy products combining pea and wheat proteins.

What are the agronomic and technological innovations that will allow the emergence of plant protein ingredients with high nutritional value?

During the transformation of the raw plant into an isolate or protein concentrate, proteins undergo structural modifications that affect their functionality. Players such as Danone Nutricia or Nestlé Health Science are starting to invest in the specialized nutrition segment with products containing plant proteins rather than milk proteins, but their R&D are facing problems of solubility of plant proteins in suspension, denaturation during heat treatments or aggregation and freezing caused by protein-mineral interactions.

The challenge now lies in developing cold transformation processes, in order not to denature the proteins and to produce isolates with high functional value (while guaranteeing their food safety).

What technologies will make it possible to produce plant proteins with the same functional properties than animal proteins?