The use of fermentation in the valorization of pulses by-products

Background

Pulses/legumes are important for human nutrition due to their high content of protein, dietary fiber, complex carbohydrates, essential vitamins and minerals, and bioactive compounds, which help to prevent malnutrition, manage weight, reduce the risk of chronic diseases and enhance gut health. However, considerable loss occurs during processing/dehulling of these grains. Legumes residues from agro-industrial processing can be valuable sources of plant proteins and bioactive molecules, contributing to global protein demand and enabling applications in feed, food, cosmetic, and packaging products. These by-products are often underutilized, leading to economic and environmental waste. However, valorization techniques like fermentation can enhance the bioavailability of these compounds, opening opportunities for their direct use in the food and pharmaceutical industries or as substrates in biorefineries.

Scope and approach

This review aims to survey the by-product from the main commercial pulses (beans, faba beans, chickpeas, peas, and lupin) and the use of fermentation to reduce/valorize pulses by-product from a biorefinery concept.

Key findings and conclusions

By-products derived from pulses are pods, seed husks, broken grains, germ, and protein extraction residues. These by-products are rich in dietary fiber and have already been incorporated into food production as ingredients. Fermentation has been used as a strategy to produce ingredients or bioproducts using pulse residues/by-products as raw material. The fermented products show significant changes in their composition (improved amino acids and vitamins content), with reduced anti-nutritional (phytates and tannins) factors and increased bioactive compounds. Moreover, some materials show enhanced technological (foaming and emulsifying) and functional properties after fermentation.