No food worries with UK-grown peas and beans

by James Gibson
As public concern about genetically modified food grows shoppers are voting with their trolleys and boycotting products containing ingredients suspected of being implicated in this latest food scare.
It is not easy to spot which are made with vegetable proteins or oils derived from gm crops as current labelling regulations are over-generous and small amounts can be ignored. But consumers need to be aware that most prepared or convenience foods contain some suspect ingredients. As there is no commercial production of gm crops in the UK, the current concern focuses on imported soya and maize, or products derived from them.
"Shoppers worried about the authenticity of imported vegetable proteins should switch to products made from UK-sourced, gm-free peas and beans," says John Manners, president of the British Edible Pulse Association, who is convinced that home-grown stocks provide honest and wholesome, back-to-basics ingredients which are safe to eat.
"Peas and beans from British farms have a long track record as a reliable source of protein for human consumption so provide a real alternative to imported soya. There is a readily available supply of high quality home-grown vegetable protein which, because it is guaranteed gm free, as nature intended, is ideal for inclusion in human foods."
Currently most UK grown pulses are used for cattle feed but supplies could easily be switched to human consumption use to provide gluten and cholesterol-free food products.
The amount of peas being canned in this country has declined sharply in recent years, and sales of dried packet peas has slowed dramatically. But demand for mushy peas from the fish-and-chip shop trade remains strong as the delights of this northern delicacy filter south. The taste for mushy peas has also been acquired by the Japanese.
UK peas are being exported to Japan for a range of human consumption uses. They are popular as a deep fried `bar-snack` nibble, when coated with sugar they provide a traditional delicacy, and when pea flour is extruded green crisps are produced. Some extruded products are even shaped like mangetout.
In this country peas are already an important filler ingredient in baby foods, so their use could easily be extended to a wider range of adult prepared foods than at present.
In the 1980`s BEPA, in an attempt to get them used more widely, asked food technologist Julie Cooke to devise recipes using pea flour and whole dried marrowfat peas. She produced a range of starters, hot and cold main courses, puddings, and naughty sweets, including a meat pie, apple crumble and chocolate fudge. Many of them are suitable for vegetarians and have the approval of the Vegetarian Society, and many are gluten free so will appeal to allergy sufferers and add variety to a coeliac`s diet.
This initiative failed to make much impact in a market dominated by imported ingredients. But BEPA believes that with the public`s current concern about what goes into food the time is now right to highlight the benefits home-grown peas have to offer. White types could be particularly useful and they have a neutral colour and lack a distinctive flavour so could be used as a soya substitute for a wide range of prepared and convenience foods.
The big advantage of sourcing human consumption proteins from home-grown pulses is that pea and bean crops need little fertiliser or chemical pesticides so offer a `green` environmentally-friendly alternative to imported soya, and reduce UK farmers` reliance on intensively grown cereal crops.