Let's talk about vegan proteins!
December 16th 2018
A new month means a new ingredient to tell you everything about. Have you ever wondered what source(s) of protein we use in our vegan shakes, and what aspects were important before we decided which of the many options we wanted to use in our plant-based products? Well… then this post is written just for you!
What is it?
First, let's talk about proteins in general: an extremely important part of your overall nutrition. Proteins can be either animal-based or plant-based. They support the body in all kinds of microbiological processes. Meals high in proteins tend to be more satiating than meals high in, for example, carbohydrates. Therefore a protein-rich diet can contribute to weight loss and/or weight maintenance.
Next to delivering 4 kilocalories per gram and thus providing you with energy, proteins are made up of a variety of so-called amino acids, which your body uses for processes like building muscle and repairing tissue. Some amino acids can be produced by the body itself, others we have to get from food. Those we call the essential amino acids.
According to the latest EFSA recommendations, the ones we’ve based our 5.0 recipe on, about 20% of the calories you consume should be coming from proteins. In Steady Standard, Agile and Athletic we use whey - a byproduct of the cheese making process - as the main source of protein. In Steady Vegan and Ready we chose to use a mix of pea and rice protein, as the plant-based equivalent.
How do we use it?
As an essential part of our nutritionally complete meals, namely as the form of proteins. Pea and rice protein are now the 6th and 7th biggest ingredients in Steady Vegan, and 3rd and 4th in Ready Instant Oats.
Why do we use it?
Compared to animal-based proteins such as whey, plant-based proteins overall contain fewer amino acids and sometimes do not cover the whole range of needed amino acids. Therefore, vegetarians and vegans not only need to consume more proteins, but also have to make sure they use a variety of different protein sources to cover their nutritional needs.
With our Steady Vegan shakes and Ready Complete Instant Oats, both 100% vegan, you do not have to worry. When we decided we wanted to offer a vegan version of our Steady shakes, we started working to create the perfect combination of different plant-based protein sources. One that would cover all essential amino acids. The eventual outcome of this nutritional tweaking was an equal mix of pea and rice protein. This mix is the source of protein we now use to produce both Queal Steady Vegan, as well as Queal Ready, another completely vegan product that we recently added to our product line-up.
Where does it come from?
The pea protein we use in our product comes from yellow peas, these are harvested in France. Also, the processing from the bean into a protein powder happens in France.
For the rice protein, we use asian rice, which is processed into protein in the Netherlands.
The more exact journey of these proteins can be found on our Supply Chain Page.
Allergens.
Both rice and peas are not among the most common food allergies. Still, of course, you can suffer from a reaction if you’re allergic to either rice or peas. Also, if it’s for the pea protein, people allergic to so-called “ground-nuts” or people with an obvious allergy for peanuts should pay close attention, as they might also react to legumes like soybeans, green beans, kidney beans, green beans etcetera.