Your card expires on .Update your payment information to continue being a member of elDiario.es.Your support is still needed.It seems that you had problems registering as a member in elDiario.es.Finish the process in just a few minutes.We need you more than ever.Your payment details are wrong or incomplete.Update your data to renew the fee and not cause cancellation as a member of elDiario.esIf things do not change, it is estimated that a 70% increase in protein production will be needed in the next 30 years for the world's growing population (some 2.3 billion will be added by 2050 to the existing 7 billion), according to data from the United Nations (UN).The reason is that the demand for nitrogen in the diet has skyrocketed with the incorporation of emerging countries into the global world.Recent studies indicate that the current system can only provide protein to a population of 3.4 billion people.Thus, the option of going deeper into the investigation of new sources of vegetable protein is currently more related to sustainability than to the vegan ethics of respect for animals.The reason is that increasing the world's head of meat-producing animals - both on land and in the sea, rivers and lakes - seems totally unsustainable if you want to feed the growing human population on the planet.For this reason, current research in food development focuses on obtaining protein sources that are less aggressive to the environment, that meet all the high quality requirements in terms of essential amino acids and whose production can be scaled without too many difficulties.Nowadays, laboratories focus on raw materials with high performance and little need for agricultural space, since legumes such as soybeans, a traditional source of vegetable protein, have become an ecological problem due to the large estates dedicated to their production. cultivation, which encourage the use of pesticides and herbicides, in addition to requiring large amounts of water.Microalgae are, as the name suggests, the smallest algae.Often single-celled organisms that thrive in salt or fresh water and get their energy from photosynthesis.In recent years they have generated significant interest because they are plant organisms with a great capacity to adapt to changes that occur in their environment without damaging it.Unlike the classic edible marine algae, popularized from Japan, such as wakame, which mainly provide minerals, vitamins and fiber, microalgae stand out for their protein content.Today, the species that are cultivated for human consumption are Chlorella, Spirulina and Dunaliella, which grow in ponds in selected areas to be immune to contamination from other algae and protozoa.The interest they have generated for a sustainable diet has led to the development of studies that show that microalgae have the capacity to produce amino acids and antioxidants.It is estimated that the average amount of carotenoids is between 0.1% and 2%, although in high salinity conditions the Dunaliella species can accumulate up to 14% beta-carotene.As for polyunsaturated fatty acids, the content in microalgae can perfectly compete with that contained in fish and its oils.But one point in favor is that those from microalgae can be used as additives to children's milk and to chickens so that, for example, they produce eggs enriched with omega 3.But above all, microalgae have long been considered a promising way of providing protein.Although its content varies depending on the species and the production conditions and is between 30-80%.According to research, Chlorella contains 51-58% protein;Spirulina platensis, 60-71% and Dunaliella salina, between 50-80%.These data show that the protein content in microalgae is higher than that contained in chicken (24%) or fish (also 24%).And finally, microalgae may be important due to their high content of vitamins A, C, E, and B12 (mainly found in animal products), as well as minerals that are essential for human health, such as magnesium, sodium, calcium, and potassium.According to the regulations on new foods (Regulation 2015/2283), microalgae such as spirulina and chlorella, for example, can already be used for human consumption, but there are still new species that require approval.At the end of the 1980s, a British company managed to develop a food rich in protein (15%) from the fermented fungus Fusarium veneratum.The novelty is that the food is not the matter that ferments the fungus, but the fungus itself, which feeds on carbohydrates to grow.Thus, the double effect is achieved of, on the one hand, obtaining vegetable protein, and on the other, reusing food waste, using it to feed the fungus.The commercial product is known as Quorn and has been marketed in the UK since 1993.In Spain, the company ODS Protein has specialized in collecting waste from the food and brewing industry to introduce it into its bioreactors together with fungi similar to the one generated by Quorn.Its managers claimed in an interview to have achieved "already 60% protein in dry weight, which is also an excellent source of fiber that allows us to add texture to the final food."The protein obtained can be used in the classic preparations for lasagna or vegetable sausages, as well as in milk protein supplements.Unlike soy, which has become an aggressive and worrying crop for the environment in its global dimension, and also causes allergies, peas can be a good alternative from the point of view of soil maintenance and recovery as well as for the management of water resources.And it is that increasing pea plantations as a source of protein can have benefits for agriculture, since it fixes nitrogen in rotating crops and thus improves soil fertility by favoring fallow.In addition, it is capable of growing without problems on land with low water supply.Just one piece of information is enough: to produce a kilo of peas you need about 50 liters of water, while to generate a kilo of beef you need around 15,000 liters of water.Peas have already carved out a niche for themselves among protein supplements for athletes as a substitute for whey.Also, in snacks.These products are made with a mixture of pea flour, rice semolina and olive oil.The most read by membersMacri, about a meeting with CFK: "With the Constitution on the table, yes"Critical raw materials for the green transition: can they be obtained without harming the environment?How to save the 'invisible' water we waste every dayHow to manage the energy transition so that it does not destroy biodiversityThe chats between "Nina" and the alleged parricide: "Hurry up Martín, your parents are dead"The challenge of producing even greener hydrogenFinancial dollars climbed again and the CCL exceeded $300Rodríguez Larreta said that "it is not time to talk about candidacies"How the attack on Cristina was planned and the doubts that investigators are still trying to clarifyKings of deception, heinous crime in IcelandThe budget project includes a laundering to buy used homes and to import productive inputsThe main phrases of Cristina in her public reappearance after the attackFor the founder of the Federal Revolution, the attack against Cristina Kirchner "is completely crazy"Kefir: what it is and why it is not dangerous like kombuchaArtificial intelligence as support in psychiatric diagnosis: “The key is how to have a more comprehensive vision”Like two beasts that smell each other before killing each other: Gallardo versus Riquelme, or the other SuperclásicoWe need your support to carry out rigorous journalism with social values