Plus for pasture-raised meat
Red meat is a better source of protein than a processed plantbased alternative, research from two New Zealand universities has found.
Findings from a human clinical trial found that meat delivered more essential protein building blocks compared to a plant-based alternative. The research was a collaboration between researchers at AgResearch, the University of Auckland, Massey University and the Riddet Institute.
The four-stage research explored the health and wellbeing benefits of eating pasture-raised beef and lamb as part of a balanced diet, compared to grainfinished beef or a plant-based alternative.
AgResearch said in statement 30 people aged 20 to 34 years, were fed breakfast on four different days and their blood, digestive symptoms and mood were monitored for four hours immediately following the meal.
Breakfast was a burrito that contained a single serving of a different protein each day. With either a pasture-raised beef, grainfinished beef, lamb and a plantbased alternative served randomly to participants across the four days. The alternative was commercially available Beyond Burger and Beyond Meat product, Agresearch said.
Dr Andrea Braakhuis, from the University of Auckland, said they measured nutrients in participants’ blood and saw a significant difference in the type and amounts of amino acids that came from the digestion of the protein of red meat, compared to the protein of the processed meat alternative.
‘‘Amino acids from red meat were of greater biological value and better absorbed by the body,’’ Braakhuis said.
The clinical results reflected those of laboratory experiments carried out on the same foods by Massey University, which showed red meat was better digested in the laboratory simulator conditions than the plant-based alternative, Braakhuis said.
‘‘Our project is showing that red meat is probably a better source of protein for the body than highly processed plant-based products promoted as meat alternatives.’’
AgResearch senior scientist Dr Scott Knowles said the new generation of plant-based meat analogues were formulated to mimic the taste and basic nutrient composition of meat.
But little was known yet about their nutritional quality and health benefits.