Think Tank BLOG: From ‘poor man’s food’ to future staple – rethinking pulses and legumes
They’ve been part of traditional diets for centuries yet today pulses and legumes often struggle to claim their rightful place on our plates. Could these humble ingredients be key to a healthier, more sustainable food system?
Small seeds, big potential
Lentils, chickpeas, beans and peas – known collectively as pulses – are rich in plant-based protein, fibre, and essential nutrients. They are also highly efficient to grow, adaptable to a wide range of climates, and friendly to soil and the environment.
Despite their credentials, consumption of pulses in Europe has dropped over recent decades. In fact, while France, Spain, and the UK account for 60% of European consumption, in countries like Germany or Denmark, intake remains well below recommended levels.
The problem is not the product – it’s the perception
Pulses face a persistent image problem. Often viewed as “poor man’s meat,” they are rarely associated with freshness, indulgence, or culinary excitement. Many consumers are unfamiliar with how to prepare them or worry about digestive discomfort. For some, the idea of beans still evokes bland meals or school canteen memories rather than a modern, healthy lifestyle.
The term “pulses” often confuses consumers due to its unfamiliarity and overlap with broader terms like legumes. Most people recognize lentils, chickpeas, or beans individually, but not as part of a single category. To enhance clarity and engagement, it is more effective to use specific language, such as “lentils and chickpeas are good sources of protein”, rather than using general terms like “pulses are nutritious”. Emphasising their nutritional value and placing them in familiar food contexts helps consumers better understand and relate to them. Using clear, relatable language bridges the gap between scientific accuracy and consumer understanding.
From niche to norm: reframing legumes for the modern diet
Today, pulses are quietly undergoing a transformation. As global food cultures become more intertwined, dishes like hummus, daal, falafel, and bean salads are reshaping how consumers experience legumes – not just as side dishes, but as main-event meals.
Convenience is also key. Whether sprouted, fermented, canned, or included in ready-to-eat meals and snacks, legumes are finding new life in innovative formats that appeal to busy consumers.
Lack of appeal, lack of convenience, and lack of knowledge are barriers to an increased consumption of pulses and legumes. Incorporating pulses and legumes into culinary contexts and easy meal solutions can be a way to overcome those barriers.
Health leads the way – but taste must follow
For consumers who already eat legumes regularly, the main drivers are health, simplicity, and affordability. Legumes are seen as filling, versatile, and natural. But while they are praised for nutrition, they are not always loved for taste.
That’s where culinary creativity comes in. Partnerships with chefs, recipe developers, and food influencers can unlock the flavour potential of legumes and show consumers how satisfying and delicious they can be.
Bridging the gap: education, inspiration, and cultural relevance
The barriers to widespread pulse adoption are not impossible to overcome – they are educational and cultural. Consumers need guidance on how to incorporate legumes into familiar meals, how to cook them without fear, and how to enjoy them without digestive discomfort.
Education campaigns, cultural references, and storytelling – especially around traditional cuisines that champion legumes – can build both trust and appetite.
The way forward: normalising legumes
To move legumes from marginal to mainstream, we need:
✅ Clear communication: Avoid jargon like “pulses” – name specific beans and how to use them.
✅ Flavour-first innovation: Make legumes crave-worthy, not just virtuous.
✅ Convenient formats: From soups to snacks, make pulses fit into busy lives.
✅ Education and inspiration: Help people rediscover the legume-friendly dishes from their own and other cultures.
When people grow up seeing these foods regularly, in meals at school, in community settings, or in everyday routines, they stop feeling like a “healthy alternative” and start becoming familiar usual food, like anything else on the plate. The more familiar and accessible legumes are from the start, the more likely they are to be embraced as a normal, tasty, and trusted part of daily life. That is how real, lasting change in eating habits begins, by making good food feel like the obvious choice.
Some of the startups working on pulses and legumes in the EIT Food network:
The Good Pulse Company develops functional ingredients mixes from pulses, using novel processing methods specifically tailored for making plant-based cheeses that are high in protein and fibre, and that can offer consumers the same eating experience, quality, and desirable characteristics of traditional dairy cheese, but without the negative environmental impact. Participants of the EIT Food Accelerator Network.
NuKoKo is the new wave of bean-to-bar manufacturing, using faba beans instead of cocoa beans to naturally create a new type of healthy and sustainable chocolate from an ingredient in the UK that is better for humans and the planet. Participants of the EIT Food Accelerator Network.
Fabas specialises in developing fermented protein ingredient solutions from beans designed to meet specific needs for high-quality plant-based meat and dairy alternatives. Participants of the EIT Food Accelerator Network.
BettaF!sh TU-NAH tastes like tuna, looks like tuna, and is an all-rounder, just like the original product straight out of the can. So what’s the difference? Using seaweed and fava beans, BettaF!sh has created the most delicious vegan alternative to tuna on the market — 100% plant-based, high in protein, and without any soy or wheat. Participant in EIT Food' RisingFoodStars.
Serio is on a mission to create healthy, sustainable plant-based products that don't compromise on taste. With a focus on clean-label ingredients and locally sourced pulses, Serio is reimagining traditional snacks to fit modern nutritional and environmental values. Participant in EIT Food's EWA (Empowering Women in Agrifood) and Sales Booster programmes.
A growing conversation
To accelerate this transition, the EIT Food Protein Diversification Think Tank and the EIT Food Consumer Observatory have developed a fact sheet packed with insights on mycoprotein’s potential, barriers to adoption, and strategies to build lasting consumer trust.
We invite stakeholders and consumers across the agrifood value chain to download the fact sheet and discover how targeted communication, smart product innovation and consumer insights can bring mycoprotein into everyday diets.
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