The virtues of sourdough bread
A research team from Belgium, Italy and Finland joined forces under the EU-funded HealthFerm(opens in new window) project to demonstrate the health benefits of pulse-based sourdough bread. Their study(opens in new window) reveals how using flour made from broad beans and yellow peas and applying optimised fermentation techniques can improve the bread’s protein content and boost gut health.
Nutritional benefits and beyond
The HealthFerm partners compared pulse-based sourdough bread to traditional whole wheat bread made with baker’s yeast. They found that the pulse-based bread had 45 % more protein. Besides higher protein content, this bread also showed a superior amino acid profile. This included higher concentrations of amino acids such as gamma-aminobutyric acid and lysine, which are said to enhance metabolic and cognitive health. Improvements in the pulse-based bread’s aroma and flavour were achieved through fermentation with lactic acid bacteria and yeasts. The overall taste of the sourdough bread therefore remained high, comparable to that of the whole wheat bread. Fermentation also led to other benefits. Pulses naturally contain anti-nutritional factors that hinder nutrient absorption, presenting challenges in food production. The inclusion of pulse-based sourdoughs – particularly doughs made with yellow pea flour – reduced these factors, making the nutrients easier to absorb and the protein more digestible. Pulse-based sourdoughs further boosted the breads’ phenolic content, leading to antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits. Broad bean flour showed higher levels than whole wheat and yellow pea, not only increasing existing phenolic compound levels but also enriching the bread with new polyphenols such as catechin and rutin. The groundbreaking nature of these results was highlighted by study co-author Marco Gobbetti, professor at HealthFerm project partner Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Italy, according to a news item(opens in new window) posted on ‘Milling Middle East & Africa’. Pointing out that sourdough has traditionally been considered low in protein, Gobbetti remarked on this innovation’s potential to lead to new fermentation and plant-based strategies in bakery production.
Citizen scientists keep their finger on the pulse
To further its goal of advancing fermented food research, HealthFerm invited citizen scientists to take part in its sourdough initiative. Over a period of 12 months or so, the project collected sourdough samples and information about participants’ sourdough maintenance practices from all over Europe. At the end, the 661 HealthFerm sourdough sample contributors received personalised sourdough microbiome reports. Participants were also asked to share feedback on their experience with HealthFerm, the reports received and their interaction with the AI assistant Dough-Pro(opens in new window). “When asked to describe their HealthFerm experience in just one single word, participants chose terms like ‘interesting’, ‘exciting’ and ‘excellent’,” a HealthFerm blog(opens in new window) reports. In September 2025, HealthFerm (Innovative pulse and cereal-based food fermentations for human health and sustainable diets) held its 6th progress meeting since the project began in 2022. Researchers and industry partners gathered in Umeå, Sweden, for two days to share their knowledge and expertise on plant-based fermented foods. The sessions provided insights into ongoing progress in microbial resources, fermentation technologies, intervention studies and consumer research. They also explored strategies related to project management, dissemination and exploitation. In-depth discussions by the project partners focused on publication practices, data management and HealthFerm’s next steps. For more information, please see: HealthFerm project website(opens in new window)
