Alternative Protein
Sources
Balancing Food Innovation,
Sustainability, Nutrition, and Health
______
Anna Nicholson, Rapporteur
Food Forum
Food and Nutrition Board
Health and Medicine Division
Proceedings of a Workshop
NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001
This activity was supported by contracts between the National Academy of Sciences and the National Institutes of Health (HHSN263201800029I/HHSN26300023); the U.S. Department of Agriculture (59-8040-0-001 and 123A9421P0017); and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (75F40120C00192), with additional support from American Heart Association; Cargill, Inc.; Center for Science in the Public Interest; Coca-Cola Company; Conagra Brands; Danone North America; Feeding America; General Mills, Inc.; Institute of Food Technologists; Keurig Dr Pepper; Mars, Inc.; Mondelēz International; and Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-70130-3
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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2023. Alternative protein sources: Balancing food innovation, sustainability, nutrition, and health: Proceedings of a workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26923.
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PLANNING COMMITTEE FOR A WORKSHOP ON ALTERNATIVE PROTEIN SOURCES: BALANCING FOOD INNOVATION, SUSTAINABILITY, NUTRITION, AND HEALTH1
RODOLPHE BARRANGOU (Chair), Distinguished Professor, Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, North Carolina State University
DOUGLAS BALENTINE, Senior Science Advisor, Global Nutrition Policy, U.S. Food and Drug Administration
NICOLE TICHENOR BLACKSTONE, Assistant Professor, Division of Agriculture, Food, and Environment, Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University
NAOMI K. FUKAGAWA, Director, Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture
JAYSON LUSK, Department Head and Distinguished Professor, Department of Agricultural Economics, Purdue University
DAVID JULIAN McCLEMENTS, Distinguished Professor, Department of Food Science, University of Massachusetts Amherst
D’ANN L. WILLIAMS, Assistant Scientist, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Center for a Livable Future, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
PATRICIA WILLIAMSON, Principal Scientist, Scientific and Regulatory Affairs, Cargill, Inc.
SALLY S. WONG, Senior Science and Medicine Advisor, American Heart Association
___________________
1 The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s planning committees are solely responsible for organizing the workshop, identifying topics, and choosing speakers. The responsibility for the published Proceedings of a Workshop rests with the workshop rapporteur and the institution.
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FOOD FORUM (AS OF AUGUST 2022)1
ERIC A. DECKER (Chair), University of Massachusetts Amherst
RODOLPHE BARRANGOU, North Carolina State University, Raleigh
WENDY BOLAND, Kogod School of Business, American University, Washington, DC
CINDY DAVIS, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland
DENISE R. EBLEN, Food Safety and Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC
NAOMI K. FUKAGAWA, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland
CUTBERTO GARZA, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York
STEPHANIE K. GOODWIN, Danone North America, Washington, DC
M. R. C. GREENWOOD, University of California, Davis
MARTIN HAHN, Hogan Lovells, Washington, DC
TERRY T-K HUANG, City University of New York School of Public Health and Health Policy, New York City
EVA HURT, The Coca-Cola Company, Atlanta, Georgia
RENÉE S. JOHNSON, Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress, Washington, DC
CHRISTINA KHOO, Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc., Lakeville, Massachusetts
VIVICA I. KRAAK, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg
CATHERINE KWIK-URIBE, Mars, Inc., Germantown, Maryland
ALICE H. LICHTENSTEIN, Tufts University, Boston, Massachusetts
PETER LURIE, Center for Science in the Public Interest, Washington, DC
DIANE MALUNOWICZ, Keurig Dr Pepper, Dallas, Texas
SUSAN T. MAYNE, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, College Park, Maryland
KAREN McINTYRE, Health Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
MEGAN NECHANICKY, General Mills, Inc., Golden Valley, Minnesota
RONI NEFF, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland
SARAH OHLHORST, American Society for Nutrition, Rockville, Maryland
NANCY A. POTISCHMAN, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
GITA RAMPERSAD, Feeding America, Washington, DC
___________________
1 The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s forums and roundtables do not issue, review, or approve individual documents. The responsibility for the published Proceedings of a Workshop rests with the workshop rapporteur and the institution.
JILL REEDY, Division of Cancer Prevention, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
KRISTIN REIMERS, Conagra Brands, Omaha, Nebraska
BRIAN RONHOLM, Consumer Reports, Washington, DC
SHARON A. ROSS, Division of Cancer Prevention, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
SYLVIA B. ROWE, SR Strategy, LLC, Washington, DC
JOHN RUFF, Institute of Food Technologists, Chicago, Illinois
KELSEY FREEMAN SAELENS, Cargill, Inc., Washington, DC
JENNIFER SALLIT, Mondelēz International, Orefield, Pennsylvania
PAMELA STARKE-REED, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland
MARY T. STORY, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
PATRICK J. STOVER, Texas A&M University, College Station
CHERYL TONER, American Heart Association, Washington, DC
DOROTHEA K. VAFIADIS, National Council on Aging, Arlington, Virginia
Health and Medicine Division Staff
HEATHER DEL VALLE COOK, Director, Food Forum
MARIAH BRUNS, Senior Program Assistant (until February 2023)
CYPRESS LYNX, Associate Program Officer
ANN L. YAKTINE, Director, Food and Nutrition Board
Reviewers
This Proceedings of a Workshop was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published proceedings as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the process. We thank the following individuals for their review of this proceedings:
ERIC A. DECKER, University of Massachusetts Amherst
RENÉE S. JOHNSON, Library of Congress
D’ANN L. WILLIAMS, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the content of the proceedings, nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this proceedings was overseen by JULIE A. CASWELL, University of Massachusetts Amherst. She was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this proceedings was carried out in accordance with standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the rapporteur and the National Academies.
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Contents
The Role of Protein in the Diet
Health and Nutritional Impacts of Increasing Alternative Protein Intake in the Diet
Environmental Impacts of Increasing Alternative Protein Intake in the Diet
Socioeconomic Impacts of Increasing Alternative Protein Intake in the Diet
The Ethics of Alternative Proteins: Technology, Animals, and Sustainability
3 IMPLICATIONS FOR THE INDUSTRY, CONSUMERS, AND REGULATORS
Industry Implications of Alternative Protein Products
Plant-Based Alternatives as Transition and Maintenance Foods
Consumer Perspectives on Alternative Protein Products
Safety Perspectives on Alternative Protein Products
Regulatory Decision-Making Tools for Novel Food Technologies
The Alternative Protein Landscape
Plant-Based Food Design, Production, and Properties
Formulation and Processing Considerations in Developing Alternative Protein Products
Food Processing and Protein Quality Considerations
Developing Alternative Dairy Products
Discussion with Planning Committee Members
C Biographical Sketches of Workshop Speakers and Planning Committee Members