Algae as a potential source of protein meat alternatives

Abstract

With the rise of plant-based meat alternatives, there is a growing need for sustainable and nutritious sources of protein. Alga is a rich protein source, and initial studies show that it can be a good component in developing protein meat alternatives. However, there are certain limitations in their use as the need for efficient and optimal technical process in large-scale protein extraction and purification, as well as overcoming certain negative effects such as potentially harmful compounds, allergenicity issues, or sensorial affections, especially in color but also in textural and flavor characteristics. This review offers a vision of the fledgling research about using alga protein in the development of meat alternatives or supplementing meat products.

Seaweed as a sustainable future food source

“…Due to its protein content and application potential, seaweed can be seen as the next emerging source of plant protein. In order to achieve the market application of plant-based meat, seaweed can not only rely on its protein characteristics to replace soy protein but also improve the value of plant meat as a raw material supplement prepared by plant meat (Espinosa-Ram ırez et al, 2023). Noteworthy examples include incorporating substances abundant in seaweed, such as aspartic acid and glutamic acid, to enhance freshness in products (Zhang et al, 2013).…”

An Overview of Ingredients Used for Plant-Based Meat Analogue Production and Their Influence on Structural and Textural Properties of the Final Product

“…In comparison to microalgae, protein content of the macroalgal species is lower-according to literature data, red seaweed protein content ranges from 35-47% [109], which is still higher in comparison to other protein sources such as soy, cereals and pseudocereals. Furthermore, the quality of the proteins derived from algae is high: they are rich in essential amino acids [110], with lysine and tryptophan being redundant in all algal species [24]. Seaweed proteins are situated inside the algal cells, and comprise mycosporine-like amino acids, lectins, glycoproteins and phycobiliproteins [110].…”

Determinants of Consumers’ Acceptance and Adoption of Novel Food in View of More Resilient and Sustainable Food Systems in the EU: A Systematic Literature Review

“…A thorough analysis of the main drivers and barriers of consumers' acceptance of novel food is beneficial to assess the feasibility of introducing these products in the EU food system. In this sense, there are numerous reviews dedicated to this topic but most of them deal with a specific novel food, especially insects (e.g., [12][13][14][15]), algae (e.g., [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26]), cultured meat (e.g., [27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37]), or plant-based analogues (e.g., [38][39][40][41][42][43][44]), while very few provide an overview of different novel foods covering both perceptive and psychological determinants of consumer acceptance [45][46][47][48][49] with only four articles adopting a systematic review approach [45][46][47]50], and none of them including an analysis of the quality of the studies. Another gap in the literature is that existing reviews rarely consider the sensory needs of vulnerable target populations such as children and the elderly …”