Sustain-a-bite will change the rules of the game!
Plant-based diet revolution: new EU project brings healthier, minimally processed plant-based foods to Europe. Sustain-a-bite is coordinated by VTT while EIT Food North-East is a consortium partner.
Over the next three and a half years, Sustain-a-bite consortium will spearhead the development of new plant-based foods while improving accessibility and sustainability in European diets. Funded by Horizon Europe, this collaborative effort will create foods that satisfy both taste and health needs while lowering environmental impacts. The project is coordinated by VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, and the consortium includes 19 partners from 13 countries.
“Our mission is to deliver technology solutions that enable healthier, more accessible and appealing plant-based food options, respecting European food traditions while promoting sustainability”, said Nesli Sözer, Sustain-a-bite coordinator and research professor at VTT.
The aim of Sustain-a-bite is to develop minimally processed food alternatives using whole grains (barley, faba bean, and chickpea) and upcycled side-streams from the food industry, such as apple, carrot, and tomato pomaces.
“Since the Industrial Revolution, we’ve focused on stripping nutrients (e.g. dietary fibre, vitamins, and other health promoting compounds) from grains to improve taste and texture. Now, Sustain-a-bite is flipping the script—bringing them back with natural, innovative processes for healthier, tastier plant-based foods, without relying on artificial ingredients or preservatives” added Nesli Sözer.
Project consortium
The project gathers partners 19 from across Europe with multidisciplinary expertise, including universities and technological centres, large food companies, along with experts in consumer behaviour, D&C and exploitation. Project partners include valued EIT Food Partners VTT (Finland), MASPEX, and Roquette.
Nutritious, tasty and affordable foods
Sustain-a-bite food design approach focuses on developing foods rich in protein, dietary fibre, vitamins, and essential nutrients, with low levels of antinutritional factors, saturated fats, and added sugars, thereby promoting associated health benefits.
By harnessing the power of nature through developed co-(bio)processing concepts, the Sustain-a-bite consortium is on a mission to produce clean-label, nutritious, versatile ingredients that reduce the reliance on additives. These ingredients offer benefits for the healthiness, affordability, and sustainability of plant-based foods.
Moreover, Sustain-a-bite minimal processes are easily accessible and adaptable for use by local, small enterprises, as well as larger companies, facilitating widespread adoption and implementation.