Lupine has great potential as a raw material for the production of plant protein. Could it serve as a healthy and tasty alternative to animal protein?
Humanity never ceases to surprise with new inventions and creations in various areas of life. Today, it seems that progress and technology are moving at a dizzying pace. We haven't even had time to get used to a new technology, and the next one is already coming to replace it. But one area is left far behind, and that is our nutritional diversity. Instead of growing and consuming new foods, we are reducing our raw materials to a few dozen individual plant varieties. New Israeli research is trying to change that and emerge with a new star on the plate – mountain lupine.
A varied diet
"There are a lot of plants that we can eat, but we don't eat them. 90 percent of our calories today come from only about 30 species of plants," says Dr. Oren Shelf, head of the research team at the Agricultural Research Administration, Volcani Institute. The research partners are Eyal Ben-Shimhon and the research team Dr. Ofer Cohen and Prof. Marcelo Sternberg, Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University.
"The problem with reducing agricultural diversity is that it exposes agriculture worldwide to vulnerability. That is, when a disease or pest arrives, or when climate conditions change for the worse, then entire industries collapse on a global scale. The best example of this is banana cultivation," says Shelf about Soil fungus which threatens to eliminate banana crops worldwide. "We wanted to look at the wild plants in Israel, and see if there were any interesting species of plants that could be incorporated into agriculture," and that's how the researchers came to the mountain lupine.
Rich in protein, but bitter
The mountain lupine It is an impressive annual plant with large blue flowers and a white spot that changes color to purple as the flower matures and is ready for pollination. Mountain lupine bears fruit in pods containing several large seeds. It grows in the north of the country, in the Shephelah, and in Judea and Samaria. Its global distribution It is native to the eastern Mediterranean basin. Several key features have brought it to the attention of researchers. Some are "agricultural" features, such as lupine's ability to grow in a variety of soil types, its ability to grow with little or no irrigation, its resistance to a variety of pests and climate challenges, and its large seeds that are suitable for mechanical harvesting. During the study, the researchers also discovered that lupine yields are similar to those of other common legume crops such as soybeans.
Another feature that attracted researchers to study lupine is its nutritional value, primarily the high percentage of protein concentrated in the plant's seeds. "At the beginning, we imagined lupine seeds as a product that could be purchased at various food stores and cooked at home. As the research progressed, it became clear that the more realistic direction was for lupine seeds to be used as a protein-rich raw material for the food industry," says Shelf. Today, the alternative protein industry is investing huge sums in finding a 'clean' solution that will replace Industrialized meat farming"We understand today that of all the options on the table for producing alternative protein, the most efficient and cost-effective way is to produce it from plants - they are the most efficient creatures in producing protein."
The researchers collected seeds from a variety of different populations across the country and divided them into two groups: lupins that grow on basaltic soils – such as in the Golan Heights, and lupins that grow on calcareous soils – such as in the Jerusalem Mountains. They then grew them in experimental plots to understand how environmental conditions affect the plant’s agricultural and nutritional properties, and thus to identify the most suitable varieties and growing methods. In general, the best results were obtained from basaltic soils.
The biggest challenge the researchers faced was the bitterness of lupine. The bitterness stems from chemicals called alkaloids – a large group of organic compounds found in plants that are known for their bitter taste. Well-known alkaloids include caffeine, nicotine and even drugs such as cocaine, ecstasy and heroin. “Mountain lupine does not excel in this trait, because its level of bitterness is very high and it needs to go through lengthy washing processes to get rid of the bitterness. We assumed that if lupine turns out to be a significant crop, food biotechnologists would be able to overcome this obstacle, but we are not there yet,” explains Shelf.
Tofu substitute
According to Shelf, several varieties of lupine are grown as agricultural crops around the world, mainly in Australia and Europe. The leading variety is the white lupine, but it is grown in small quantities compared to other protein sources such as soy or chickpeas. It is difficult to process, does not yield a larger crop, and also has a bitter taste. It can sometimes be found sold on the roadside in Druze villages in the north of the country, but it is not grown commercially in the country.
Another collaboration between Shelf and Dr. Louis Bashir and his students from the Department of Food Sciences at Tel Hai College may indicate the culinary direction in which lupins are heading. One of the department's students' final projects was to create 'tempeh' from white lupins. 'Tempeh' is a traditional Indonesian dish, and is made by fermenting legumes, usually soybeans. The final product is somewhat similar to tofu. Tempeh is gaining momentum around the world as part of the attempt to consume healthier and cleaner protein substitutes.
Today, agriculture is causing significant environmental damage due to soil pollution, groundwater contamination, soil erosion, deforestation, and fuel burning that occur on a massive scale in agricultural areas around the world. The goal of the research is to produce agriculture A new, cleaner, better alternative to our current food system. While it may not be worth it to produce protein from lupins, one thing is clear – relying on a few types of crops is dangerous. For food security Ours, and it is important to continue looking for additional sources of protein.
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