Protein development: Innovations pivot from plant-based hype to taste, function and cost focus

Protein development is entering a new phase, driven by both consumer demand and industry requirements. Consumers are no longer satisfied with novelty alone — they expect protein to provide taste, function, and health benefits while also remaining cost-effective.

This has spurred innovation in hybrid, plant-based, and dairy protein and techniques such as precision fermentation and cellular agriculture as the protein market expands into new frontiers, each with its own technical hurdles and opportunities.

The demand for protein-enhanced F&B has opened up opportunities for manufacturers to embed protein into convenient and lifestyle-aligned products. According to Innova Market Insights’ survey, nearly 58% of consumers globally want to actively include protein in their diet.

Food Ingredients First speaks with Sternchemie, Kerry, Corbion, and Foodology by Univar Solutions to uncover how protein development is shifting beyond the plant-based hype, blending science and culinary innovation to tackle challenges in taste, stability, and cost.

“The main protein sources driving innovation in food and beverage applications continue to be the more traditional sources such as dairy, soy, pea, rice, and wheat,” says Annalisa Segat, global proteins R&D manager at Kerry.

“Many of the emerging protein sources, such as canola, chickpea, fava bean, mung bean, pumpkin, etc., continue to play a niche role, due mainly to the key challenges of taste and cost.”

She stresses that consumers continue to seek protein sources that deliver improved sustainability and health benefits, but only if there is no significant impact on taste or affordability.

Protein in beverages

Another relatively recent innovation Segat points to is the development of clear protein refreshing beverages based on whey or hydrolyzed pea protein. 

Formulators face the challenge of ensuring protein stability and solubility in water-based clear protein drinks, says Rabeler.“Many recent innovative refreshing beverage launches contain clear soluble plant protein based on enzymatic hydrolysis.”

Dr. Roland Rabeler, head of business development at Sternchemie, also observes a strong trend toward water-based, clear protein drinks.

“The main challenge lies in ensuring protein stability and solubility, as consumers prefer transparent drinks to blurry or milky ones. Additionally, precipitating needs to be avoided, and overall, no effect on taste is tolerated.”

High functionality is important, particularly regarding nutritional value, sensory quality, and processing properties, which can be achieved through targeted selection and technological adaptation of protein sources. 

“We are currently experimenting with a range of special lecithin preparations and fractions to stabilize nanoemulsions and to functionalize proteins,” adds Rabeler.

Protecting protein shelf life and functionality

Lecithin is one ingredient that Sternchemie is emphasizing for protecting proteins and extending their shelf life.

“We focus on improving protein functionality and processability by stabilizing the natural protein structure,” Rabeler tells us.

Sternchemie develops lecithins for protein functionality and processability by stabilizing the natural protein structure (Image credit: Sternchemie).“Enzymatically hydrolyzed lecithins, in particular, can effectively protect proteins from denaturation, thus not only helping to extend shelf life but also counteracting deposits that can occur, for example, during UHT treatment.”

He explains that lecithins are important co-factors, especially in cellular agriculture and precision fermentation, and, as in nature, form “lipo-protein complexes” that enable the actual protein functionality.

Meanwhile, Corbion is addressing shelf life concerns in plant-based proteins, which are prone to microbial growth due to higher pH levels, application manager EMEA, Cristiane Marangoni, shares.

“To address this, we provide robust preservation solutions that integrate factors like pH, water activity, and antimicrobial ingredients to ensure optimal safety and freshness. Our focus includes spoilage and pathogen control, effective strategies against threats like Listeria and Clostridium, and flavor optimization, which are crucial for consumer acceptance.”

“Additionally, our antioxidant solutions help maintain product color and freshness over time.”

Impact of consumer preferences

Marangoni continues that consumers’ health consciousness and sustainability demands influence how protein ingredients are developed.

“Current consumer demand indicates a preference for natural and plant-based proteins, emphasizing clean labels, transparency, and fewer artificial ingredients.”

While acknowledging the trend toward plant-based protein consumption, she notes that this is often part of a “broader shift toward a combination of both plant and animal proteins.” Rather than a complete replacement, many populations look to achieve a higher ratio of plant-based sources.

Meanwhile, Segat points to a slowdown in plant-based foods “after years of hype.”

“This market is currently experiencing a period of disillusionment, as evidenced by declining sales in this sector and many key players exiting this market.”

“Traditional protein sources such as dairy and eggs are seeing a resurgence, based on strong taste, nutrition, and familiarity credentials.” She notes that while opportunities remain for plant-based and alt-proteins, sustainability or novelty alone is no longer enough, as consumers expect nutritional, functional, and taste benefits at an affordable price.

Mitigating protein taste and mouthfeel challenges

While consumer demands spur various novel protein innovations, formulators often face issues related to the taste aspects of the product, including “mouthfeel, astringency, or cooked off-notes,” says chef Dylan Morton, culinary development lead at Foodology by Univar Solutions.

Buffering agents help maintain pH and reduce grittiness in protein drinks, says Morton.“Other issues relate to technical aspects of the protein, including ways it can be properly dissolved on a spot basis in a powdered application or how well it can stay dissolved over time without separating.”

He urges formulators to consider how other ingredients affect the pH — a critical solubility metric. “Often, a buffering agent will be added to maintain a stable pH throughout a product’s shelf life. Otherwise, limiting the amount of protein as well as adequate shear with mixing protein into a liquid can help minimize grittiness and create a smooth mouthfeel.”

Formulating with novel proteins struggles to match the performance of animal-based proteins, creating a “notable gap” in the market, flags Segat. These include functionality challenges like solubility, viscosity, mouthfeel, and pH/heat stability.

“Solubility and viscosity challenges can be addressed by high shear mixing, high-pressure processing, or homogenization. Enzymatic hydrolysis is another useful tool to improve solubility, pH/heat stability, and bioavailability.”

Eyeing cost reduction

The cost of protein ingredients is an important aspect for manufacturers, which Sternchemie is tackling by using lecithins.

Segat higlights the importance of partnering with universities, start-ups, and chefs to drive protein innovation.“Enzymatically hydrolyzed lecithins, in particular, can effectively protect proteins from denaturation,” Rabeler tells us. 

“This can make a critical contribution, especially in the further processing of dairy or plant-based protein products. Reducing deposits caused by denatured proteins, for example, during UHT treatment, may reduce cleaning cycles and thus lead to higher capacity utilization.”

Propelling innovation with collaboration

Collaboration with stakeholders like chefs and researchers helps accelerate protein innovation. This includes tackling issues such as protein functionalization and stabilization, which require experiments and research at a higher scientific level, says Rabeler.

“It is the close collaboration and intensive exchange with customers, scientific research groups, and, last but not least, the experts at our Stern-Technology Center in Ahrensburg, Germany, that enables us to develop innovative solutions and establish them in various applications.”

Segat highlights the importance of collaboration across the supply chain, from partnering with universities and start-ups to leveraging Kerry’s in-house chef network and local application teams. “Combining newly developed technologies with global multinational scale capabilities and go-to-market access can be very powerful.”

Morton shares an example of chefs’ importance in developing protein recipes: Foodology by Univar Solutions’ nacho cheese-flavored protein chip containing Micellar Casein Isolate and Clean Whey 90 and “protein-fortified lemon pudding tart containing a proprietary ingredient called MP PRO C80.” 

“We are getting a lot of interest from our customers wanting protein added to their current products, so innovation on the protein front will continue to be a big trend.”

AI will drive protein innovation, especially in meat analogs and functional beverages, says Marangoni.

Future trends

Looking ahead, Corbion’s Marangoni anticipates AI will drive protein ingredient innovation. “This can be driven by the emergence of new plant-based and alternative proteins and the demand for high-moisture meat analogs and functional beverages.”

Meanwhile, Kerry’s Segat says global trends, such as the growing usage of GLP-1 medications for weight loss, can potentially influence protein innovation as they increase the demand for high-protein, nutrient-dense foods to support muscle maintenance during weight loss.

Sternchemie’s Rabeler expects precision fermentation, cellular agriculture, and fully functional proteins to transform the F&B sector in the next five to ten years.

“These technologies could enable the production of highly tailored protein ingredients that not only support health and nutrition goals but also offer improved functionality for texture, structure, and stability in complex formulations.”

“As climate pressures and population growth intensify, biotechnological solutions offer sustainable alternatives to traditional animal and plant proteins. They can potentially reshape the protein landscape through microbial engineering and real-time process control,” Rabeler concludes.