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Opportunities to capitalize on pulse protein quality
J. D. HOUSE (1). (1) Dept. Human Nutritional Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

Pulses, the edible seeds of plants in the legume family including dry peas, beans, chickpeas and lentils, are globally important as a vegetable protein source. Pulses play significant roles in vegetarian and vegan diets and historically have been combined with cereals for a complete diet. The rich lysine content of pulses complements the lysine deficiency in cereal grains and these in turn complement the limiting sulphur amino acid content in pulses. Based on this complementary model, food developers have the opportunity to formulate products using optimal blends of legume and cereal flours that may result in the ability to market food products as a good source of protein. Various methods exist to measure protein quality. To date, protein quality for pulses range between 0.8 and 2.3 for cooked and dry pulses using the protein efficiency ratio (PER), and between 50 and 70% for dry pulses using the protein digestibility corrected amino acid score (PDCAAS). Factors, including processing conditions and anti-nutritional facts can also impact the quality of pulse proteins for the human diet. Very recently, a new method called the Digestible Indispensible Amino Acid Score (DIAAS) method has been proposed for measuring protein quality and its use may lead to both challenges and opportunities for the plant-based protein industries. The pairing of pulses with cereal grains has the potential to position blends of plant proteins that will meet and even exceed proposed cut-off criteria for regulatory claims related to protein quality.

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