BISCUITS and pasta that use high-protein lupin flour could be set to join a line of healthier breads already stocked on supermarket shelves.
A member of the legume plant family, lupin kernels ground into pale yellow flour have featured in the Slimmer’s Choice loaves available around Perth for the past year.
Researchers at the Centre for Food and Genomic Medicine in Nedlands have developed the bread and several other lupin-based products.
Similar to soybeans, lupins are high in dietary fibre but low in fat and carbohydrates with CFGM studies suggesting that the foods “help people to feel fuller longer” while limiting calorie intake.
CFGM Associate Professor Vijay Jayasena said talks underway with a WA company to introduce more products by the end of the year were “a fantastic leap forward” from the already successful loaves.
“The great thing about these new foods we’ve created like noodles, biscuits and crisps is they allow people to make a healthy change without having to change their entire dietary habits,” he said.
The budding success of introducing more lupin-based products could prove a boon for the State with WA responsible for growing about 80 per cent of the world’s supply of Australian sweet lupins.
CFGM director Professor Peter Leedman said the centre had made “great headway” with a series of ongoing investigations studying the health benefits of lupins.
“It looks like lupin foods have global potential which would not only lend potential health benefits to the State, but fantastic economic results as well.”