On the occasion of World Pulses Day, Roquette, a global leader in plant-based ingredients, highlighted the exceptional properties of peas through the outstanding results of a recent DIAAS (Digestible Indispensable Amino Acid Score) study on its pea protein.
According to te company, this study and its associated results represent another major milestone in Roquette’s commitment to contribute to the development of a new plant-based cuisine offering high nutritional quality and sustainable food for a healthier planet.
The nutritional quality of proteins is the combination of two factors that are key in terms of nutrition: the digestibility and the composition in amino acids. The recent study, conducted by the Roquette team in partnership with renowned academic experts from the INRAE, France’s National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment, concluded with a DIAAS score of 100, showing that pea protein offers a balanced amino acid profile and an excellent digestibility that fully responds to consumers’ nutritional needs.
The DIAAS methodology allows the evaluation of the digestibility of each indispensable amino acid in the protein with a very precise protocol implemented in humans. This high-level method is used to complement the notable PDCAAS (Protein Digestibility-Corrected Amino Acid Score) of 93 already obtained for NUTRALYS® pea protein.
Dedicated Roquette R&D teams are evaluating and advancing the benefits of the NUTRALYS® pea protein range thanks to the expertise developed throughout the 20+ years of Roquette’s involvement in pea protein. From the outset, Roquette has been collaborating with world-class research teams and shared the results of this impactful DIAAS study with the scientific community. Reputed for offering high-quality ingredients, Roquette wants to support its customers in the development of a healthy and delicious plant-based cuisine.
Caroline PERREAU, Nutrition and Health Research Manager at Roquette, explained: “Thanks to high level scientific collaborations with academic experts, we showcase, through the robust DIAAS methodology on humans, the premium nutritional quality of our pea protein. This was another step to share our expertise about pea protein nutritional benefits.”
Jeremy BURKS, Senior Vice President of Plant Proteins at Roquette, added: “The result of this study is another piece of evidence that pea protein is an outstanding plant-based ingredient. At Roquette, we aim to be the best partner for our customers and all the players along the value chain, and we are proud to be the first to use this methodology that confirms our strong bet for this extraordinary pulse.”
Juliane CALVEZ, Research Scientist at INRAE, said: “In a clinical study on healthy volunteers, we showed that Roquette’s pea protein isolate displayed a well-balanced indispensable amino acid composition associated with a high digestibility. We obtained a DIAAS of 100 that demonstrates pea isolate is an excellent source of plant protein for human diet.”