According to Teagasc’s Sinéad Fitzsimons, faba beans will be one of the crops that can drive the development of the plant protein sector in Ireland.
She has confirmed that research and development work is already taking place on seven different varieties of this particular bean type.
Fitzsimons, who took part in a recent edition of the Tillage Edge podcast explained: “We have also looked at spring and winter peas plus five different varieties of peas.”
Plant protein sector
The Teagasc specialist also referenced a number of other relevant tubers and pulses as potential crop candidates for the burgeoning plant protein sector.
All of this work is being carried out under the auspices of the Teagasc U-PROTEIN programme.
“Fractionating the various crops into their various components is central to the processes that we are developing at the present time,” Fitzsimons continued.
“This includes the use of a technology called iso-electric precipitation. E.g., changing the pH of a solution containing solubilised faba bean will precipitate the protein content of the product.
“Centrifugation allows us then to separate the protein from the fibre and starch.
“We then have two streams. One is made up of the enriched protein component, the other comprises all the other products that can be utilised at a commercial level,” she added.
Process
According to Fitzsimons, the entire process is adding value to plant components, many of which would have been considered as by-products up to this point.
For crops like mashua and oca, which are grown for their tubers, the aim is to extract soluble materials. This is achieved through a combination of juicing and separation.
Fitzsimons stressed that the various processes applied can be tweaked so as to retain the full functionality of the end products that are secured.
She further explained: “Retaining the functionality of these products is key, particularly given the fact that they will be targeted at the food ingredients market.”
A key objective of the U-PROTEIN project is to maximise the bio-availability of the products derived from the original plant sources.
So in the case of proteins, the option of blending different sources to deliver the most effective combination is an option.
One physical parameter of protein, from an ingredients perspective, is the necessity to make it available in a wholly soluble form.
The option of blending a mix of plant and dairy proteins is also an option when it comes to developing new, nutritional beverages.