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If a food is highly processed, does that mean it’s bad for our health?
Between the long term health consequences of excessive meat consumption and the environmental impacts of the meat industry, recent years have seen an increased support for plant-based meat alternatives that mimic the textures and flavours people know and love.
Today, scientists working on alternative proteins challenge this idea by attempting to replicate the taste and texture of traditional animal meats with plant-derived or other ingredients. But as plant-based meats hit the market, so do further concerns about the presence of additives and sustainability.
At UBC, researchers are working on advancing food technology by improving the nutritional value, flavour and environmental impact of these products. Amir Amiri, a PhD student in the Food Process Engineering Lab, is one of them.
Amiri is working on a project to create plant based wagyu beef. He shared the three main options for creating protein alternatives: plant-based protein, single-cell protein and culture protein.
Single-cell protein comes from microorganisms such as yeast, while culture proteins come from animal cells grown in labs.
According to Amiri, the “future of protein alternatives belongs to culture [proteins].” Culture proteins come from lab-grown meat, where stem cells are collected from a live animal, grown in a nutrient-rich environment and arranged to hold cells together, replicating the texture of meat.
The most difficult part of Amiri’s research involves manipulating the structure of proteins so lab-grown meat replicates the texture and flavour of animal meat.
Animal proteins have a fibre shape (think: muscle fibres), but the proteins Amiri works with have a globular shape (like a sphere). He uses a process called extrusion, which unfolds and refolds the proteins into the desired, meat-like structure.
“We use high pressure and high temperature to open the structure of the protein,” said Amiri. “In the second part, which is cooling zone, the open and denatured protein will make the shape of animal-like fibres.”
It might seem like alternative proteins require a lot more effort and processing than their animal-based competitors. But how do they stack up nutritionally?
Felicia Tsam, a registered holistic nutritionist, compared traditional meat and plant-based options.
“The big differences we are going to see is in the cholesterol,” said Tsam. Plant-based proteins don’t contain cholesterol unless they also have animal-derived ingredients in them, such as eggs.
Another point of distinction is sodium content, as most plant-based meats come with added sodium, unlike traditional meat, where consumers add their own salt during preparation. Despite these differences, she emphasized her literature review found no significant change in blood pressure between those eating plant-based meat versus traditional meat, as people tend to salt their food regardless.
In terms of vitamin and mineral content, plant-based alternatives may offer more consistency than animal meat.
“Most plant-based alternatives … today are fortified,” said Tsam. She said specifically nutrients like iron and vitamin B12 that are more difficult to get on plant-based diets are added.
These fortifications can sometimes make plant-based options more nutritionally balanced, especially when compared to individual cuts of animal meat, which can vary in their nutrient profile, according to Tsam.
As researchers have turned their focus to plant-based and alternative proteins, so has the government. The latest iteration of Canada’s Food Guide emphasizes choosing plant foods as often as possible, citing their high fibre and low saturated fat content.
Tsam said this is a good first step and highlighted the importance of making these plant based foods more accessible.
“I actually think that the biggest thing we can do is move toward changing policy to subsidize things like fruits and vegetables and whole grains and beans, legumes, to make them cheaper.”
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