Diet Rapeseed should be tapped as a new protein source

Rapeseed: A new protein resource for humans

Ever tried rapeseed or rape cake? Rather unlikely, as the protein-rich seed has an unbearably bitter note. However, this could change soon, because a German research team recently identified the crucial substance responsible for the bitter taste. This paves the way to develop rapeseed for human consumption.

Rapeseed is rich in oil and high quality proteins. The latter have not been used for human nutrition so far, as the rapeseed has an intense bitter taste that makes them inedible. Researchers at the Technical University of Munich have now revealed the responsible bitter substance and now want to develop a process that will turn the bitter rape into a tasty and protein-rich food. The research results were recently published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

Rapeseed oil enjoys great popularity in many kitchens in this country. Soon, other components of the plant could be introduced. (Image: Marla / fotolia.com)

Upcoming bottlenecks in protein supply

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) points out that there will be increasing supply problems as the world's population grows. "In this context, bottlenecks are to be expected especially in the protein supply," reports Thomas Hofmann, Head of the Department of Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensor Technology at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) in a press release on the study results.

New sources of protein need the land

Hofmann emphasizes that it is therefore particularly important to develop new plant and domestic sources for daily protein needs. Rabssaat is very good for it - apart from the bitter taste. So far, only rapeseed oil is produced from the seed. It would produce over one million tonnes of crude proteins, which are currently used only as protein feed in the animal fattening. This rapeseed cake is very rich in high-quality proteins containing many vital amino acids.

On the way to a tasty rape

The team around Hofmann identified in the study the main responsible for the bitter taste. It is a compound with the complicated name "kaempferol-3-O- (2" -O-sinapoyl-β-sophoroside). "In initial experiments, the researchers were already able to isolate a protein from the oilseed rape, the less than 10 percent of the original bitter substances. "Still too bitter," judged testers in taste tests.

When does the rape cake come to the table??

"Now that we know the cause of the bitter miscarriage, it is much easier to develop suitable technological processes or breeding strategies that can be used to produce tasty, protein-rich foods from rapeseed," says co-author of the study Corinna Dawid. Maybe rapeseed will soon be on the shelves of supermarkets as a new staple food. (Vb)