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Evaluation and Manipulation of the Mechanisms and Interactions of Protein-Carbohydrates-Ingredients for Formulating Novel Plant-Based Cheese

Objective

Today, there is a considerable desire to consume sustainable products due to healthy and ethical reasons, environmental sustainability, and issues related to greenhouse gas emissions. Ireland now specializes in producing beef, lamb, and dairy—which are the most emission-intensive foods—but plans to cut greenhouse emissions (50%) by 2030 and reach net zero emissions by 2050. Cheese manufacturing consumes significant quantities of energy (4.9-8.9 MJ/kg) and the study on the novel dairy-free cheeses has gained high interest due to the new opportunities offered by the worldwide market where it is predicted to rise to 3.90 billion USD by 2024. The dairy-free industry faces major challenges to formulate dairy-free cheeses with excellent nutritional properties, functionality, flavour, and texture—compared with the dairy-based cheeses. This study proposes to evaluate and manipulate interactions of plant proteins/carbohydrates/relevant ingredients through food material science, aiming to design an innovative dairy-free cheese with similar physicochemical, rheological, and sensory properties to the dairy-based cheese. This project will be carried out during a 2-year period at Teagasc with a 3-month secondment in University College Cork. Firstly, the physico-chemical interactions, structures and functional properties of materials will be studied and the most appropriate materials and their ranges will be determined (WP1). After producing some prototypes of dairy-free cheeses, the properties of them will be determined (WP2), and then, formulation(s) will be optimized (WP3). Finally, the quality of the optimized sample will be compared with commercially available cheeses (WP4). Results of this study will contribute to the industrial/sustainable production of dairy-free cheeses; thus, it will provide food security, sustainable lifestyles, and consumption patterns in alignment with current Teagasc goals, Horizon 2022, EU, and Irish government research initiatives.

Keywords

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Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

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Funding Scheme

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HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01

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Coordinator

TEAGASC - AGRICULTURE AND FOOD DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 199 694,40
Address
Oak Park
R93 Carlow
Ireland

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Region
Ireland Southern South-East
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
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Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

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