Hemp seed has a long history of use
in food. The last decade has seen
a resurgence of hemp, particularly
in Canada and European countries,
on the back of growing interest in
developing more environmentally
sustainable plant-based foods.
Hemp seeds are technically a nut,
and may be eaten raw (de-hulled),
extracted for oil, ground into a
meal, sprouted, or made into a
beverage (hemp milk). Hemp seeds
can now be sold in food products
in New Zealand (as of November
2018) and the composition of hemp
products available on the New
Zealand market are currently being
analysed for inclusion in the next
release of the New Zealand Food
Composition Database (https://
www.foodcomposition.co.nz/). Data
from the USA shows hemp seed
is a good source of oil and protein,
with a number of other nutrients and
HIGH HOPES FOR HEMP FOODS
bioactives that support a range of
future food opportunities.
Whole hemp protein is not
recognised as a complete protein,
i.e. including the nine amino
acids essential to the human diet.
However, isolates may come closer
to being a complete protein and
combining hemp protein with other
complementary plant proteins -
including from nuts, lentils, dried
beans and grains - can provide all of
the essential amino acids humans
need, making it a good source for
new plant-based protein foods.
The recognition of hemp as a food
ingredient has allowed growers to
begin experimenting with hemp
crops. There is an opportunity to
breed and select cultivars better
suited to New Zealand’s regional
climates, while tailoring composition
to meet consumer drivers. This will
allow hemp to be grown sustainably
to produce high yielding carbonneutral
food and fibre products.
The discovery of natural bioactive
compounds, as well as peptides
that reduce blood pressure and
cholesterol, in hemp seed byproducts
provides opportunities to
develop new higher-value consumer
foods. Production of high-value
hemp protein isolates will require
new processing knowledge to
isolate hemp proteins as functional
ingredients. The development of
scalable food processes that allow
creation of novel structures and
flavours from hemp protein isolates
is also a necessary step towards
consumer acceptability of novel
hemp foods.
Our hopes for a growing hemp food
industry must also be tempered in
respect of our future consumers.
We need to investigate what our
consumers want from plant-based
THEIR SAY
Dr Kevin Sutton, Plant & Food
Research science group leader,
food and bioproducts technology
foods beyond analogues of milk
and meat; understand whether
consumers understand the concept
of a complete protein and how
that might change their behaviour
towards hemp foods; as well
as understand how consumers
in various markets differ in their
preferences for plant-based food
flavours, aromas and textures.
16 ANNUAL DIRECTORY 2020
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