South Africa's new technology of soy beneficiation
Our new technology beneficiates yet another South African raw material, the soybean - and by so doing has led to the establishment of an important industry new to the African continent.
Specialised Protein Products' (SPP) Potchefstroom Process® which extracts the entire contents of the soybean by a natural water process without the use of chemicals, has created great interest at home and overseas. The development of such a process underscores the advances that are regularly made by South African scientists.
All the goodness of soy without the beany taste
While the Potchefstroom Process® extracts all the goodness of the bean it eliminates the old beany taste, making SPP's ingredients, manufactured to the highest international quality standards, ideal for inclusion in a wide range of foodstuffs. The factory is, in fact, certificated to international standards of HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) and ISO 9001
The soybean is highly nutritious. In addition to its essential macro and micronutrients, it also contains physiologically active food components - so called Functional Foods.
Such components provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition and are found in soybeans as isoflavones, phytates, saponins and trypsin inhibitors - discussed in some detail in the Soy, Nutrition & Health section of the Website.
Quality of all protein is determined by the Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS). Soy protein has a PDCAAS score of close to one, equalling that of casein and egg protein. SPP soy ingredients provide all the nourishing goodness of the soybean protein.
The SPP Website you are now reading was developed to communicate technical support and sales information on the factory and its products to food scientists and nutritionists here and abroad. It was also conceived to create a greater general knowledge of soy as a food in the diet. In the spirit of enlightened self-interest, it was intended to inspire nutritionists, healthcare professionals, food scientists and technologists to exploit to the full, the nutritional and health benefits of soy.
The Soy Nutrition & Health section is a review of such information drawn from a multitude of worldwide sources.
Obstructing the invasion of opportunistic diseases
An investment in soy is an investment in improving not only the quality of life for a great number of South Africans, leading to improved learning skills and development of the body to its maximum potential but also each individual's right to be fully productive.
Good nutrition helps to obstruct the invasion of opportunistic diseases - not least tuberculosis, certain types of cancer and human immune deficiencies.
Of course, opportunistic diseases proliferate in conditions of polluted water supply, air pollution and poor sanitation, but sustained good nutrition assists the body to build up immunity to these other conditions with which it is confronted.
The 1999 National Food Consumption Survey in children aged one to nine, conducted under the auspices of the Department of Health, revealed that a large percentage of South African children consumed a diet deficient in energy and certain nutrients, in many cases less than fifty percent of the recommended daily allowance.
The effects of malnutrition are insidious and wide ranging
 | | Although malnutrition can cover both over-nutrition and under-nutrition, it causes in the latter instance many cases of stunting and cognitive impairment in children. Under-nutrition can be described as the prolonged inadequate dietary intake of nutrients essential for growth, development and health. The effects of malnutrition are often insidious and wide-ranging, while the consequences of wrong diets can be felt from the individual up to the national level because of the loss in human potential. |
Clinical studies have shown that soy-based infant formulas are associated with normal infant growth, good protein nutritional status and bone mineralisation.
Much progress has been made in nutrition outreach programmes, but much remains to be done to achieve long term goals. A relentless focus on the nutritional upliftment of the greater section of the population remains essential. The increased use of soy, combined with other selected foods can help to contribute, cost effectively, to a balanced diet and better overall health.
In countries like ours that are in the process of strengthening their economic and social institutions, malnutrition is usually seen as a problem that will be eliminated by development. But because malnutrition can have such a detrimental effect on growth, mental and physical capacity, it also stands in the way of reaching that goal.
New soy-based products are coming your way
Soy is good for the affluent as well as the poor.
As soy is so versatile, it has led to the development of products suitable for school and mass relief feeding schemes such as soy-maize porridge and soy-based nutritional drinks. It has also found its way into a wide variety of supermarket products - including soymilk, cultured products like yoghurt, frozen desserts, breads, cereals and processed meats.
This trend is expected to accelerate, leading to a marked upsurge in soy-based products and products containing soy over the next few years.
Specialised Protein Products' mission is to create a chain of soy utilisation from bean to table. South Africa is its proving ground but the same lessons will help the company to bring its considerable advances into the rest of Africa with the company's world standards, proven technology and processes of uncompromising excellence.
Beneficiation of raw materials is South Africa's future, having led it from its erstwhile 'colonial economy' to a dynamic stand-alone nation. The beneficiation of its golden soybean crop into value-added products is a manifestation of this process.
Joint ventures and alliances
SPP offers consistent, uniform, high quality ingredients and seeks local and overseas business associates to produce downstream products. Joint ventures will receive welcome consideration, particularly in product blends, toddler nutrition and as a functional food ingredient. SPP seeks enterprises with the same goals, that can add value in the development of soy products and grow the technology. |
For SPP formulation, blending and non-standard products
SPP Food Technologists are employed to work with their customer counterparts including nutritionists and dietitians, to help food manufacturers develop new products utilising SPP soy ingredients and in reformulating or adjusting formulations to incorporate SPP soy ingredients. This invaluable service is available free to food processors by contacting SPP’s Marketing Department.
|
Information drawn from Unicef's The State of the World's Children
and a review of the National Food Consumption Survey
About Soy