Meltable cheese alternatives made from legumes

Demand for more variety in cheese alternatives

The global market for dairy-free cheese alternatives is growing steadily. Driving innovation and diversification in vegan cheese alternatives are the increasing number of people adopting vegan lifestyles and the heightened awareness of health and environmental issues. At the same time, the texture and taste should be as close as possible to that of traditional cheese.

The Pulse2Cheese project is investigating the use of legumes as a promising alternative to animal protein as a base ingredient for plant-based cheese alternatives. Legumes can be grown sustainably and occur naturally in diverse ecosystems worldwide.

Innovative production processes for legume based cheese alternatives

The project aims to improve the knowledge of melting behavior as a critical texture property of plant-based cheese alternatives. First, protein and starch fractions from different legumes available in Germany and Brazil will be obtained and characterized with respect to their chemical, microstructural and functional properties.

Based on the results obtained, model recipes will be formulated before being fermented with appropriate starter cultures and matured into sliceable cheese alternatives. Finally, the industrial implementation and applicability of these vegan cheeses in Germany and Brazil will be demonstrated by the use in popular foods such as frozen pizza and pão de queijo (Brazilian cheese bread).

The results will be used to modify the nutritional composition and melting properties of plant-based cheese alternatives within the framework of Pulse2Cheese through specific interactions between proteins and starches, in accordance with the environmental conditions. The project will develop formulation protocols that include promising environmental conditions, processing parameters, and the ability of specific enzymes and starter cultures to produce vegan cheese. This will overcome the disadvantages of currently available products in this market segment, improve consumer acceptance of plant-based cheeses and promote the use of sustainable raw materials.

High quality vegan cheese alternatives through synergistic expertise

The project is carried out in close cooperation with the Research Institute for Food Technology (ITAL) and the University of Campinas (Unicamp). Fraunhofer IVV, ITAL and Unicamp provide complementary knowledge in the development of cheese alternatives based on plant proteins and starches, as well as in the evaluation of the functional and sensory profile.

The small and medium-sized companies from Germany and Brazil involved in the project represent the entire value chain from raw material to end product and support the scientific community with market-relevant topics and economic key figures. This makes it possible to respond to the needs and expectations of consumers and to develop targeted technological and product-relevant solutions.

The project will benefit farmers, pulse processors, food ingredient producers and manufacturers. In addition, food retailers and consumers will indirectly benefit from cheese alternatives that are more sustainable and more closely resemble the original dairy products.