Dive Brief:
- General Mills is using a pea-based flour to add protein to foods. The company sees the ingredient as an alternative to animal-based proteins, according to Bloomberg Businessweek.
- In particular, the company sees considerable potential in foods made with "pulses." General Mills has begun buying the legume at extraordinary levels, locking up supplies from vendors and ag traders.
- General Mills isn't alone. The number of foods being made pulse-based ingredients has soared in recent months, and now includes Triscuit crackers and Barilla pasta.
Dive Insight:
Everything old is new again. The craze surrounding pulses is remarkably similar to other crazes in recent years in which food companies and consumers developed a new love for ancient foods. Consider if you will the rise of quinoa, acai and coconut water.
There is a danger here, however. Just as the surging popularity of quinoa brought unintended consequences to the people who grow it, a global lust for pulses could limit access to the crop for small-scale farmers. That will have an impact. Pulses play a vital role in crop rotation, which is why the United Nations has declared 2016 the Year of the Pulses.