After soybeans emerge the drinking peas. And to eat, in innovative formats compared to the great classic of risi e bisi. Alt Milk and Alt Cheese, plant-based drinks and alternative protein sources to various milk and dairy products, as well as meats. In fact, peas lend themselves well to the extraction of protein concentrates and isolates, as well as the use of the seeds themselves as ingredients. (1)
After all, the global plant-based protein market is estimated to reach 7.7 percent of the total in 2030, with a growth of 1715 percent over 2020 (from USD 29.4 bn to USD 162 bn. Bloomberg Intelligence. OECD Agricultural Outlook 2021-2030, GFFI 2020 State of the Industry Report). A promising prospect for growing legumes, possibly organic, in Italy as well.
Peas and sustainability
Sustainability of food supply chains is a very effective driver of growth, although it often results in mere greenwashing, which only the UK seems interested in hindering. Reconsideration of the balance between animal and plant production remains the focus of attention. (2)
Peas are presented as a ‘sustainable alternative’ to milk-although no nutritional comparison between milks and their plant-based alternatives is possible, as noted-because of their lower environmental impact. Land consumption and atmospheric emissions associated with pea cultivation would be 36 and 6 times lower, respectively, than those required for dairy production. (3)
Vegetable drinks, peas vs. soybeans
Pea protein is favorably characterized, both quantitatively and qualitatively. This has two orders of advantages:
– Nutritionally, there is an appreciable supply of essential amino acids and bioactive peptides,
– From a technological point of view, the water retention properties and foam-forming, gelling and fat-binding abilities make for a milk-like beverage. (4)
The absence of allergenicity is another point in favor of peas over milk and soybeans themselves. (5) And anti-nutritional factors–also present in soybeans, which in fresh peas can partially limit digestive processes (phytates and phytoestrogens) and inhibit proteases (saponins)–can be largely removed or deactivated by certain processes (e.g., heat treatment, production of protein isolates). (6)
Cow’s milk v. Alt Milk, compositions
Vegetable beverages should possess a similar nutritional and sensory profile to milk. Currently, only soy beverages come close to it in terms of protein concentration, while other beverages on the market barely reach 1 percent in protein, often also with lower concentration or bioavailability of valuable micronutrients. (7)
The composition of cow’s milk (in whole, semi-skimmed and skimmed variants) tends to be standardized, outside of the A2 variant. In vegetable drinks, the composition depends on the ingredients used to correct certain deficiencies, such as fats and minerals, or the flavor, which in the case of peas has a characteristic herbaceous hint (8,9).
Peas, methods of protein extraction
The choice of production process affects the quality of pea beverages in terms of protein extraction yield, shelf-life, and sensory properties. Separation of components from the seed can be performed in two ways:
– air dry. The ground seeds are subjected to an air current that draws away the lighter protein fraction from the starchy fraction in which legumes are also rich, through the removal of the outer integument. This method is more sustainable because of the low input, although the yields are not among the highest, (10)
– stewed. The ground or flaked seeds are soaked in an aqueous solvent that extracts the protein fraction, which is then dried to facilitate storage and transportation. The yield is higher than the dry system (~80 to 90%). (11)
Vegetable beverages, the production process
The production of vegetable beverages traditionally continues in the removal of insoluble substances, homogenization and heat treatment to stabilize the final product, after the addition of other ingredients and possible additives. (12).
The use of protein isolates or concentrates, which are easy to emulsify in water, makes it possible to obtain products that are more similar to milk in terms of nutritional, sensory and functional properties. (13)
Mixtures of animal and plant proteins
Mixtures of animal proteins-from milk and whey-and vegetable proteins, including those from peas, was the subject of a clinical study conducted in elderly subjects. Protein requirements, as seen above, increase with advancing age as a function of lower absorption capacity. The protein mix was found to provide a more complete and functional supply of essential and nonessential amino acids, which are partially deficient in both milk and its whey and legumes. (14)
Protein and amino acid supplementation is also a very important aspect of nutrition to support sports. In fact, athletes engaged in competitive or competitive physical activity have peculiar protein requirements, and the combined intake of proteins of different nature and composition is more useful to achieve this goal. (15)
The maintenance of optimal health is in turn related to protein intake and the nature of its constituents, as noted above. Diets that supplement proteins of different origins are therefore more favorable, from both nutrition and health and sustainability perspectives, to the greater in that a good share of plant sources from legumes is present. (16)
Yogurt and innovative foods with and based on peas
A yogurt with peas was prepared by mixing a pea drink with conventional milk. In fact, the isolated plant drink could not be fermented with lactic acid bacteria because of its high starch content. (17) At present, the full replacement of milk protein with pea protein results in a deterioration of the overall product quality, partly due to the absence of specialized strains of lactic acid bacteria. (18)
The gelling technique employed (e.g., heat, use of enzymes or acids) seems to be the determining aspect in influencing the properties and microstructures of the gels formed by pea beverages as is or in mixture with milk, and according to this it is possible to employ these processing intermediates more or less optimally to obtain innovative foods with peculiar structures. (19)
Interim conclusions
The pea-based beverage today certainly turns out to be an excellent alternative to other vegetable drinks, with a respectable nutritional profile. The growing success of such beverages in the international market will presumably encourage their development, along with that of other matrices (e.g., hemp).
The creation of dairy-like products, however, is still in its early stages, although research is very promising in the development of fermented liquid foods such as yogurt made with added animal milk. In turn, the mixture of milk and plant proteins is optimal in providing nutritionally superior value intakes compared to the individual constituents for different population groups.
Dario Dongo and Andrea Adelmo Della Penna
Notes
(1) Vogelsang-O’Dwyer et al. (2021). Production of pulse protein ingredients and their application in plant-based milk alternatives. Trends in Food Science & Technology 110:364-374, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tifs.2021.01.090
(2) Willet et al. (2019). Food in the anthropocene: The EAT-lancet commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems. The Lancet 393(10170):447-492, https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(18)31788-4
(3) Poore et al. (2018). Reducing food’s environmental impacts through producers and consumers. Science 360(6392):987:992, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aaq0216
(4) Boye et al. (2010). Comparison of the functional properties of pea, chickpea and lentil protein concentrates processed using ultrafiltration and isoelectric precipitation techniques. Food Research International 43:537-546. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodres.2009.07.021
(5) Sabate et al. (2014). Sustainability of plant-based diets: Back to the future. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 100:476S-482S, https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.113.071522
(6) Mohan et al. (2016). Antinutritional factors in legumen seeds: Characteristics and determination. Encyclopedia of Food and Health pp. 211-220, https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-384947-2.00036-2
(7) Marta Strinati. Vegetable beverages, 330 products compared with milk. Scientific study. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade), 05.6.20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/consum-attori/bevande-vegetali-330-prodotti-a-raffronto-con-il-latte-studio-scientifico
(8) McClements et al. (2019). Plant-based milks: A review of the science underpinning their design, fabrication, and performance. Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, 18(6):2047-2067, https://doi.org/10.1111/1541-4337.12505
(9) Murat et al. (2013). Characterisation of odour active compounds along extraction process from pea flour to pea protein extract. Food Research International 53(1):31-41, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodres.2013.03.049
(10) Sozer et al. (2017). Traditional and new food uses of pulses. Cereal Chemistry 94(1):66-73, https://doi.org/10.1094/cchem-04-16-0082-fi
(11) Arntfield et al. (2011). Peas and other legume proteins. Handbook of food proteins pp. 233-266, https://doi.org/10.1533/9780857093639.233
(12) Jeske et al. (2018). Past, present and future: The strength of plant-based dairy substitutes based on gluten-free raw materials. Food Research International 110:42-51, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodres.2017.03.045
(13) Jeske et al. (2019). Formation, stability, and sensory characteristics of a lentil-based milk substitute as affected by homogenisation and pasteurisation. European Food Research and Technology, 245(7):1519-1531, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-019-03286-0
(14) Liu et al. (2019). Amino acid availability of a dairy and a vegetable protein blend compared to single casein, whey, soy, and pea proteins: A double-blind, cross-over trial. Nutrients 11:2613, doi:10.3390/nu11112613
(15) Reidy et al. (2014). Soy-dairy protein blend and whey protein ingestion after resistance exercise increases amino acid transport and transporter expression in human skeletal muscle. J. Appl. Physiol. 116:1353–1364, https://doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.01093.2013
(16) Lonnie et al. (2018). Protein for life: Review of optimal protein intake, sustainable dietary sources and the effect on appetite in aging adults. Nutrients 10:360, https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10030360
(17) Denkova et al. (2013). Examining the possibilities for application of pea milk in obtaining fermented probiotic foods. Scientific Proceedings of the University of Russia 52, http://conf.uni-ruse.bg/bg/docs/cp13/10.2/10.2-5.pdf
(18) Youseef et al. (2016). Fermentation of cow milk and/or pea milk mixtures by different starter cultures: Physico-chemical and sensory properties. LWT 69:430-437, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lwt.2016.01.060
(19) Ben-Harb et al. (2018). The rheological and microstructural properties of pea, milk, mixed pea/milk gels and gelled emulsions designed by thermal, acid, and enzyme treatments. Food Hydrocolloids 77:75-84, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodhyd.2017.09.022
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
Graduated in Food Technologies and Biotechnologies, qualified food technologist, he follows the research and development area. With particular regard to European research projects (in Horizon 2020, PRIMA) where the FARE division of WIISE Srl, a benefit company, participates.
