Enhancing the nutritional quality of novel whole-cut meat alternatives, using fungal fermentation, biofortification and process innovation

肉类提供了英国40%的蛋白质摄入量，但红肉是2A类致癌物，是饮食相关疾病的主要原因（世界卫生组织；牛津大学）。我们的目标是通过开发更健康的以菌丝体为基础的全切肉替代品来减少英国红肉的消费量。随着人们对肉类的健康担忧日益增加，植物性替代品正在快速增长；目前全球价值120亿美元，到2030年将达到1000亿美元（BCG；彭博社）。40%的欧洲人现在是弹性素食主义者，理由是健康（ProVeg）。以植物为基础的替代品被宣传为健康产品，但通常蛋白质含量和质量较低，并且通常是含有20多种成分的高度加工产品（汉堡/香肠/肉馅），包括人工智能？粘合剂（甲基纤维素）。有些是用维生素和矿物质合成强化的，但这些营养物质的生物利用度低，而高植酸盐/抗营养因子阻碍了吸收（Hurrel;Singh&Satyanarayana）。为了鼓励减少肉类，我们需要更健康、更创新的替代品。菌丝替代品具有巨大的潜力；富含蛋白质和纤维，其PDCAAS比植物蛋白甚至牛肉都高。然而，它们在某些营养成分上的含量低于牛肉，而且在加工过程中会损失一些蛋白质。这项可行性研究将开发创新的方法，使我们突破性的菌丝体牛排成为最有营养的肉类替代品。这些创新将应用于阿达莫食品公司的牛排替代品，它具有模仿肉类肌肉组织的超逼真纤维结构。我们的“牛排”将以世界领先的数据为特征，根据这些数据评估成功的营养增强，并提出扩大规模的建议。成功将缩小牛肉的营养“差距”，通过解决积极的（蛋白质/微量营养素）和消极的（致癌/胆固醇/抗营养）营养驱动因素来吸引更多的顾客。

Meat provides 40% of UK protein intake, but red meat is a Group 2A carcinogen and leading cause of diet-related disease(WHO;Oxford University). We aim to reduce UK red meat consumption by developing healthier mycelium-based meat whole-cuts alternatives.With increasing health concerns around meat, plant-based alternatives are fast-growing; worth $12bn globally today, $100bn by 2030(BCG;Bloomberg). 40% of Europeans are now flexitarian, citing health(ProVeg).Plant-based alternatives are marketed as healthy, but often have lower protein content and quality, and are often highly-processed products (burgers/sausages/mince) with 20+ ingredients, including arti?cial binders (methylcellulose). Some are synthetically fortified with vitamins and minerals, but with low bioavailability of these nutrients and high phytates/antinutritional factors blocking uptake(Hurrel;Singh&Satyanarayana). To incentivise meat reduction we need healthier, more innovative alternatives.Mycelium-alternatives have huge potential; high in protein and fibre, with a PDCAAS higher than plant proteins and even beef. However, they have lower content than beef in specific nutrients, and some protein is lost during processing.This feasibility study will develop innovative methods to make our ground-breaking mycelium steak the most nutritious meat-alternative available. The innovations will be applied to Adamo Foods' steak alternative, with an ultra-realistic fibrous structure mimicking meat's muscle tissue. Our "steak" will be characterised with World-leading data, against which successful nutrition enhancements will be assessed, with recommendations for scale-up.Success will close the nutrient "gap" on beef, attracting more customers by addressing positive (protein/micronutrients) and negative (carcinogenic/cholesterol/antinutritional) nutritional drivers.