Superfood from a bioreactor

Specialists of the Center for Technical Research in Finland, led by Dr. Heiko Rischer, are working on a new promising method for the production of healthy and delicious food products of plant origin using plant cell culture technology.

This approach is not only a fundamentally new direction for the food industry, but also opens up new prospects for society as a whole. Already today, the amount of arable land is not able to meet the growing needs of the global population for food. Therefore, the search for new solutions in this area is an extremely important task. Cell cultures have sufficient potential to solve this problem.

The production of meat using cell cultures has recently been a topic of active debate. However, the authors believe that plant cell cultures will make it possible to produce food with a higher nutritional value much faster, easier and with less financial costs.

The aim of the authors' study was to evaluate the nutritional and sensory qualities of dried and fresh cloudberry, cranberry and boneberry cells grown in culture.

All samples had a pleasant, fresh and mild taste, reminiscent of the taste of the corresponding berries. Dried samples had a richer berry taste, which dissolved pleasantly in the mouth. In appearance, they also resembled the berries of the same name.

The nutritional value of plant cells in many respects even exceeded the nutritional value of berries. The cell samples were characterized by an increased protein content (14-19%), and in vitro analysis demonstrated good protein digestibility. The content of essential amino acids in them, which are important for the health of muscles, bones and other tissues, exceeded the corresponding indicators for soy, which is considered an excellent source of amino acids. The fiber content in the samples varied from 21% to 37%, which exceeds the fiber content, for example, in breakfast cereals. The caloric content was also higher than expected. In addition, plant cell samples turned out to be rich sources of unsaturated fatty acids and polyphenols, known for their health benefits.

For the food industry, fresh and dried plant cells provide opportunities to create new products for a healthy diet, such as fruit cocktails (smoothies), compotes and snack foods (snacks).

For example, within the framework of the "Food My Way" project, researchers propose ideas for creating vending machines in which it will be possible to buy healthy food products corresponding to individual preferences. Bioreactors can be used in cafes and restaurants to grow a suspension of fresh cells, which will later be added to the final product.

Articles by Jussi Suvanto et al. Variability in the production of tannins and other polyphenols in cell cultures of 12 Nordic plant species and Emilia Nordlund et al. Plant cells as food – A concept taking shape published in the journals Planta and Food Research International.

Evgenia Ryabtseva, portal "Eternal Youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru based on VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland: Tasty superfood from plant cell cultures.