Vegetable Protein Isolates and Concentrates by Ultrafiltration

Abstract

Vegetable protein products have been consumed for centuries in the Orient. However, it was not until this century that the rest of the western world recognized them, and soybeans in particular, for their human food value. At present, soybeans are the major cash crop in the United States and are the major source of edible oil. Once the oil is removed, however, the major portion of the defatted soybean meal is used mostly as animal feed, with perhaps about 3–5% being used directly as human food. Although this may appear to be relatively small, it is apparent that a large number of food companies routinely incorporate vegetable proteins into some of their traditional food products and are developing new product formulations using vegetable proteins as a major ingredient or sole source of protein. The annual growth rate of this usage directly in human food is increasing at the rate of 10% per year [1].