Plant-based protein isolates with low sodium content for production of healthy and sustainable foods

The increasing demand for a healthy and sustainable diet can be met by eating more plant-based proteins.

However, products with plant-based proteins often have high sodium levels, and contain anti-nutrients which may inhibit absorption of minerals.

Sodium is added as salt (sodium chloride) to make the products palatable, but also originates from extraction of protein isolates.Excessive sodium intake impairs public health and entails significant healthcare costs for society.

Thus, there is a need to reduce the sodium content in food, but a reduction must be done without negative effects on taste, texture, microbial safety, shelf-life and sustainability.The goal of the work is to contribute to healthier plant-based foods that fulfil the Swedish criteria for “The Keyhole” and comply with EU low-sodium claim level by developing methods to produce protein isolates from peas with a low content of sodium and anti-nutrients.Protein isolates are used for extruding texturised vegetable proteins, which in turn are the starting ingredient for many tasty and healthy plant-based meals.

Multisensory solutions are used in the meal development to reduce the need for adding salt.

The meals are evaluated in consumer studies performed in schools.Chemical, physical and sensory analyses are carried out for evaluating several different properties of the proteins to ensure their functionality and palatability. The sustainability of the processes and systems level is also evaluated.