TECHNOLOGY FOODHow to turn peas
into “meat”
US company Beyond Meat has found a way to recreate
the protein structure of meat, although its “chicken” is
only made up of plant matter.1 The peas, which are the primary source of protein,
are harvested. Protein from
soybeans is added.2 Pea seeds are soaked in water.
In the process, protein
is collected from the
peas and dried to make
up a powder.3 Other dried plant matter is added to the powder, such as
fat in the form of vegetable oil. A
machine heats, cools, and pressurises
the mixture, producing a protein
structure reminiscent of that of meat.4Flavouring agents are added,
and the finished product is
boxed before being carried to
stores. To provide the meat with the
right colour, titanium oxide – a
natural mineral which functions as
white colour pigment – is added.be scaled up to such extents in the future
that stem cell meat will be able to compete
with the old-fashioned method concerning
both taste and price.
Mark Post’s burger is made up of real
muscle fibres from a cow, but other scientists
are more interested in plants as the means to
produce burger alternatives. Companies such
as Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat in the US
have developed plant-based meat products,
which consist of protein from soybeans and
peas, but their tastes and textures are
designed to mimic meat from chicken and
cattle. The companies have replaced animal
fat by coconut oil, and a special blood molecule
known as haem, which is extracted from
plants, provides the dried protein powder with
the authentic taste of meat.
Apart from the environmental gain of
producing artificial meat based on plants, there
is every indication that the new plant-based
food is a healthier alternative to the real thing.
In 2016, research by the Harvard Medical School
showed that the protein source is an important
health factor. People who are already
overweight or smokers can benefit particularly
from food based on plant protein, reducing their
risk of cardiovascular diseases. This is so
because real meat includes saturated fat, which
increases the cholesterol level in the blood.MERE BUGS WILL SAVE THE WORLD
The artificial meat products will probably be
accompanied by other food in the future. And
unlike stem cell burgers and artificial meat
made of pea powder, this source of protein is
perfectly natural.
The protein content of insects such as
beetles, larvae, locusts, and crickets is
comparable to that of beef and chicken, and in
addition, they also include lots of healthy fatty
acids, minerals, and amino acids. In
comparison with cattle and chicken, the
creepy-crawlies are much more efficient
protein factories and can be bred at a fraction
of the resources.
According to FAO, cattle require 12 times
more feed than crickets for the production of
the same quantity of protein. One important
reason for this is that, unlike cattle and pigs,
insects are cold-blooded creatures. Domestic
animals consume lost of energy from the
food to keep warmer than their surroundings,
but that is not necessary for the cold-
blooded insects.
UN experts even estimate that for every
hectare of farmland used to breed and feedArtificial chicken:^
The plant-based
chicken gets its
protein from both
peas and soybeans.
The meat is rich in
calcium and iron.Juicy vegetarian burger:The
burger includes about the same
quantity of protein and iron as
the real thing, but no cholesterol,
trans-fats or other nasties.VEGETARIAN FOOD LAB & BEYOND MEAT/YOUTUBEVEGETARIAN FOOD LAB & IMPOSSIBLE FOODSSIMULATES
MEAT
TEXTURE