Fermentation: is it good for plant-based food?

When we talk about fermentation in the food field, our thought immediately goes to products always known and consumed in everyday life, such as bread and beer, developed through traditional fermentation. Nowadays, however, we can talk about several types of fermentation, core of the next generation of fermented ingredients and products. Specifically, fermentation in the alternative protein industry refers to the cultivation of microbial organisms to get a better ingredient or product than is currently available, even specific ingredients such as flavors, enzymes, proteins and fats.

According to the report entitled “Fermentation: Meat, Eggs and Dairy” issued by the Good Food Institute in 2021 investments in fermentation technologies have increased, with fermentation companies raising $587 million which represents 57% of total industry funding.

Fermentation has now become one of the pillars of the alternative protein revolution, along with plant proteins and cell culture.

How does fermentation impact plant-based foods?

The trend related to the world of plant-based products, which in recent years has been generating more and more interest among consumers, is not driven by those who adopt a vegan or vegetarian diet, but by consumers who are aware of the impact that the animal industry has in terms of environmental sustainability and protection of animals and ecosystems. However, the challenge in producing alternative foods instead of animal ones, such as meat, cheese and vegetable eggs, lies in reproducing the food in all its aspects; from taste, to texture, to organoleptic and nutritional profile. New fermentation technologies are emerging as an innovative way to create better and healthier products.

The alternative protein industry uses fermentation in three main ways: traditional fermentation, biomass fermentation and precision fermentation. Traditional fermentation is the one most widely known and used, to create products such as bread and beer. This process involves the consumption of sugars and other nutritional compounds by certain microorganisms, usually anaerobes. Biomass fermentation, on the other hand, uses the growth and protein content of microorganisms to make large amounts of protein-rich food.Finally, precision fermentation uses so-called “cell factories” to produce specific functional ingredients, able to improve sensory properties and functional characteristics of the target product.

Fermentation technologies can be used to improve certain aspects of the product, such as taste, texture, shelf-life, as well as to give it positive health benefits. For example, to give vegetable meat the palatability and texture typical of conventional meat, specific enzymes can be used to modify the texture. In addition, fermentation can also be applied to improve the flavor and functionality of the food, for example by replacing certain emulsifying agents, fats or colorants.

The US company Impossible Food’s give us an example of how they use these technologies by employing a precision fermentation ingredient, heme, to help recreate the succulent effect of animal meat in their veggie burger.

In addition, according to Mintel’s report entitled “Patent insights: fermented ingredients in food & drink” recent research has revealed that fermentation improves the nutritional profile of ingredients compared to non-fermented alternatives, supporting the prevention and treatment of metabolic diseases such as obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

What do consumer say?

Consumers tend to look at fermented foods and beverages as natural and healthy products: in addition to conventional yoghurt and fermented milk, there is a growing interest in several non-dairy fermented foods and beverages due to a number of nutritional and therapeutic benefits. Especially since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers have become more aware of the health issue. As a result, there has been a growing interest in foods and beverages fortified with natural ingredients that are rich in nutrients, driving brands to develop foods and beverages enriched with fermented ingredients.