Posted on 11/14/2025 5:39:54 AM PST by Red Badger
Researchers enriched the product with tomato powder, spices, and a mixture of fat sources made up of sunflower, olive, and linseed oils. Credit: Unicamp
======================================================================
Scientists in Brazil and Germany developed a new plant-based meat using sunflower flour.
The product delivers strong nutritional benefits, including protein, healthy fats, and key minerals. Its neutral taste and sustainable, non-GMO origin make it a promising alternative to soy- or pea-based proteins.
Sustainable Meat Alternative From Sunflowers
Researchers from the Institute of Food Technology (ITAL) and the University of Campinas (UNICAMP), both located in São Paulo, Brazil, worked with scientists from the Fraunhofer IVV Institute in Germany to create a new meat substitute made from sunflower flour.
The process begins by extracting oil from sunflower seeds. Before the resulting flour can be used in foods, the husks and phenolic compounds must be removed, as these naturally occurring substances give the flour a darker color and make it harder to digest. Once refined, the flour becomes a versatile ingredient suitable for human consumption.
The research team developed two versions of the meat substitute. One used flour from roasted sunflower grains, while the other incorporated textured sunflower protein. To enhance both taste and nutrition, the mixtures were enriched with tomato powder, spices, and a blend of sunflower, olive, and linseed oils.
High Nutritional Value and Mineral Richness
The mixtures were shaped into small burger patties and baked. Each version was then tested for texture, taste, and nutritional quality. The textured protein variety proved superior, showing better firmness and higher levels of protein and beneficial fats, particularly monounsaturated fatty acids. It was also found to be rich in minerals, providing 49% of the recommended daily intake for iron, 68% for zinc, 95% for magnesium, and 89% for manganese.
The researchers, whose work was supported by FAPESP, focused on sunflower meal because sunflower oil is widely used in Europe and sunflower farming is expanding in Brazil. Another key advantage is that the ingredient is not genetically modified, which increases its appeal to consumers looking for natural, sustainable foods.
Sunflower flour is also a strong source of plant-based protein, making it highly relevant as demand grows for sustainable alternatives to animal products.
Mild Taste and Strong Nutritional Profile
Maria Teresa Bertoldo Pacheco, a researcher at ITAL’s Center for Food Science and Quality and lead author of the study published in Food Research International, explained that refining the flour significantly improves its taste. “It should also be noted that, after removing the husks and phenolic compounds, the flour has a very neutral taste and aroma, especially compared to the various vegetable proteins on the market.”
Pacheco also points out that the product has a favorable composition of essential amino acids. This is another factor that could lead to its incorporation into the food industry as a meat product substitute from a nutritional point of view. “From a functional-technological standpoint, processes that build fibrous proteins, such as extrusion, are needed to deliver a product with a more meat-like appearance and texture,” says Pacheco.
Toward a Meat-Like Texture
“I think the study provided a lot of positive references, both for making full use of the cultivar and for encouraging the consumption and appreciation of the flour. The partnership with German researchers was also very important, thanks to the sharing of working techniques, the exchange of knowledge, and the exchange of students and researchers,” she adds.
Reference:
“Exploring new plant-based products: Acceptance of sunflower meal as a protein source in meat alternative products”
by Tiago Negrão Andrade, Clara Takayama Arbach, Aline de Oliveira Garcia, Laricia Domingues, Tainá Vieira Marinho, Elizabeth Nabeshima, Bruna Fernanda Damasceno Ramirez and Maria Teresa Bertoldo Pacheco, 28 March 2025, Food Research International.
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2025.116158
Dear FRiends,
We need your continuing support to keep FR funded. Your donations are our sole source of funding. No sugar daddies, no advertisers, no paid memberships, no commercial sales, no gimmicks, no tax subsidies. No spam, no pop-ups, no ad trackers.
If you enjoy using FR and agree it's a worthwhile endeavor, please consider making a contribution today:
Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you,
Jim
As the Leftists running most Western countries start weaning people off of their sick habit of enjoying the taste of red meat, we will be exposed to further ideas like this.
By the way, how do they expect to wean dogs and cats off of their similar sick habit?
...or maybe we enjoy eating meat for a reason, like maybe it is the only way to be healthy?
Never mind.
I’ll stick to meat, but I’ll try it just to say that I tried it.
I don’t take culinary advice from people who are on the record wanting to kill me.
Yep, they know, they ALWAYS know.
If you eat sunflower protein will birds attach you cause you smell like food to them? Paging Alfred.
On A second note: Wouldn’t it be fun to make up the Fortune Cookie sayings?
You going to be Audited by the IRS.
Your spouse is having an affair.
Prepare for a flat tire on the way home.
This meal is going to give you bad diarrhea.
That is just a few clean ones that come to mind.
“Researchers enriched the product with tomato powder, spices, and a mixture of fat sources made up of sunflower, olive, and linseed oils. Credit: Unicamp”
Sounds about as yummy as a turd in a punch bowl.
...linseed oils...
Well, you can always use it to polish one.................
Acorns. Get ‘em now.
Fungus would be better.
Looks like something my cat vomited on the floor a couple days ago.
Vegans are completely obsessed that their food looks like meat.
I can’t repeat here what that looks like, this being a family-friendly site and all....
We already know how well fake meat and eating insects went over as the new government-endored super foods.
Maybe this should be what EBT card holders can get.
Now there’s an idea!
Alinsky’s Rules For Radicals:
RULE 4: “Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules.” If the rule is that every letter gets a reply, send 30,000 letters. You can kill them with this because no one can possibly obey all of their own rules. (This is a serious rule. The besieged entity’s very credibility and reputation is at stake, because if activists catch it lying or not living up to its commitments, they can continue to chip away at the damage.)
Will someone please explain to me why vegans need a meat alternative???
Ooo, soylent yellow.
Researchers enriched the product with ... linseed oils.
now they want us to eat paint ...
btw, warnings about so-called food-safe linseed oil:
Important safety considerations
Ventilation: Even with non-toxic linseed oil, it’s important to work in a well-ventilated area, especially when applying it to wood, as it consumes oxygen as it dries.
Oil rag hazard: Rags soaked in linseed oil can spontaneously combust as the oil oxidizes. Store them in a sealed metal container of water or dispose of them safely to prevent fires.
Skin contact: While not acutely toxic, repeated skin contact can dry out your skin. Wear gloves to avoid contact.
Inhalation: Inhalation of oil mist can be irritating, so avoid spraying the product and ensure good ventilation.
So we’ll dry up and die of oxygen depletion , but we’ll have a nice shiny corpse?..................
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.