Wide Open Agriculture in regenerative lupin food plan

Regenerative agriculture company Wide Open Agriculture is tapping into the plant-based food chain. See its latest plans.

WEST Australian food company Wide Open Agriculture hopes to have a pilot plant processing sweet lupins to supply global plant-based food companies with protein isolates by the end of this year.

WOA has just signed a research services agreement with Curtin University to develop a range of food and beverage products based on lupin protein, including burgers, milk powders, drinks and gluten-free pasta and noodles.

Managing director Ben Cole said the lupin protein project could see the revival of lupins in farmers’ cropping rotations.

“The Curtin University agreement means we have got a clear pathway in the next two months to see how lupin protein works in burgers, pastas and milk formulas,” Dr Cole said.

Dr Ben Cole with lupin protein developed for the food market.

“We are also aiming in the next three months to send samples out to global food companies.

“This year, we also want to have a pilot manufacturing plant operational.”

Dr Cole said the Curtin University research would provide information on the application of the lupin protein for WOA’s Dirty Clean Food product range but also pave the way for exports to global food companies.

WOA wants to focus on high growth categories, such as vegan, gluten-free, soy-free and non-genetically modified foods.

“The global appetite for plant-based proteins is $US18.5 billion ($AU24.3 billion) and it is forecast to grow to $US40 billion ($AU52.6 billion) over the next decade,” he said.

“The goal for the pilot plant is ensure we have got enough supply of our lupin product but also at a price and quality to get offtake agreements.

“We need to make sure it meets customers’ needs.”

Dr Cole said the Australian sweet lupin seed was “an amazing grain”.

But he said most lupins grown in WA were largely of an animal feed grade.

Lupins are a great break crop against weeds and insects.

But as an animal feed product, they attracted a low price.

Production in WA had slumped from about one million tonnes 10 years ago to about 350,000 tonnes this year.

Dr Cole said there were great opportunities to develop lupins for the human food market and pay farmers higher prices.

He said pea protein was a case in point.

“Peas would be sold for about $500 a tonne,” he said.

“But as soon as you go into protein isolates, the price rises to $7500 a tonne.

“There’s real magnitudes in the value when you go from effectively an animal feedstock in the whole grain form into a food ingredient.

“We would love to see more farmers growing more lupins.”

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