As the plant-based trend continues to grow and expand, so too does the need for additional, increasingly specific functions from starches, gums, and fibers. This is most strongly evidenced by the rush to create better analogs and replacements for meat and dairy products.

Leading the category are starches and gums derived from tropical plants such as tapioca (also known as manioc or cassava), green bananas and plantains, konjac (a bulbous tuber similar to the yam), and, more recently, seeds such as chia and hemp. These sources claim inherent non-GMO and gluten-free status, with many of them boasting additional cachet from recognized health benefits. (A big push of this healthful aspect into the limelight was the declaration by the FDA at the end of 2021 that acacia gum may now be labeled as a prebiotic fiber.)

Roots and tubers have long been sources of flours, starches, gums, and fibers for various indigenous populations around the world. With long histories in their native countries, they are being “rediscovered” by Western product developers.

Taro, acacia, and tapioca starches were the vanguards, used in food manufacturing for decades. But, recent years opened the door to similar sources, such as from lotus seed, burdock root, sago, jackfruit seeds, canary seeds (a newcomer that only recently received GRAS status from the FDA and approval as a novel food by Health Canada), and even mango seeds.

The growing interest in healthful complex carbohydrates (especially prebiotics) is leading to increased interest in ingredients such as natural resistant starch (from high-amylose maize, potatoes, bananas, and other sources); oligosaccharides (medium-chain carbohydrates that function like insoluble fibers), such as inulin; and glucomannan, (processed from konjac, locust bean, guar, tara, and fenugreek seeds). Carbohydrates from seaweed are moving beyond carrageenan gum to flour from microalgae and other marine plants.

While gums and fibers from konjac, tamarind, and dextran are having a renaissance, others to watch out for include seaweed flour, brea gum from the legume family, and Camelina and Clasping Pepperweed, both from the Brassicaseae family that gives us broccoli, cabbages, and mustard (already a source of an excellent gum).

In addition to the digestive health capacities, research has revealed other bioactive characteristics in certain gums. An example is an up-and-coming derivative from the greater plantain, also called barhang. It was shown to have high levels of  phenols, flavonoids, and other antioxidant content.

The category of starches, fibers, gums, and even flour products is one of the major pillars supporting the sustainability trend due to its large footprint in the rapidly growing industry of upcycling. They make up the main components of plant waste. Common players include such well-knowns as pectin, often derived from apples; fiber from citrus: and flours, fibers, and starches taken from nuts.

Other common ingredients finding “second usage” include soy, lentils, beans, peas, and chickpeas after the oils and proteins have been extracted. But, new sources of upcycled ingredients are growing fast. Recent examples are coffee, berry starch, pineapple pomace, and flours from vegetables such as cauliflower, broccoli, and carrots.

Ignited by the demand for products to meet such stringencies as clean-label, sustainable, fair trade, natural, non-GMO, and gluten-free parameters, ingredient developers will continue to explore the countless species of edible grains, seeds, roots, and tubers to introduce more gums, flours, starches, and fibers into mainstream use. The overwhelming diversity of plants used as food on six continents promises thousands of such prospects.

Note: Dr. Erhan Yildiz contributed to this article.

2023 | foodmaster.com