The project has achieved scientific and technical progress towards developing minimally processed, healthy and sustainable plant-based ingredients, and food prototypes based on barley, faba bean, chickpea, and fruit and vegetable pomaces. Activities focused on optimisation of co-(bio)processing technologies, ingredient and prototype development, nutritional and sustainability assessment, and consumer-oriented research. A key result was a databank documenting how minimal processing affects ingredient properties. Screening of germination, fermentation, PEF, US, HPP, and dry fractionation technologies demonstrated strong potential to improve nutritional quality and techno-functional performance of plant-based ingredients. Germination and fermentation increased beneficial compounds such as free amino acids, folates, GABA, antioxidants, and mineral bioavailability while reducing antinutritional factors including phytic acid and raffinose family oligosaccharides. Non-thermal processing technologies improved protein accessibility, matrix functionality, reducing antinutrients and microbial load. The project developed 7 innovative minimally processed food prototypes, including meat alternatives, fermented beverages, yoghurt and spreadable cheese alternatives, baked snacks, and non-fermented drinks. Initial analyses demonstrated improved nutritional quality with reduced phytate levels and increased antioxidant capacity. The project also focused on establishing scientific and methodological basis for investigating the processing–food matrix–health nexus of minimally processed plant-based foods. A desktop study was performed screening the current plant-based food market in Europe considering food products aimed for in the Sustain-a-bite project including beverages (milk alternatives, juices, smoothies), semi-liquids (yoghurt alternatives, spreadable cheese alternatives, paté-like spreads) and solids (cereal-based snacks, meat alternatives). The study provided targeted guides for food product development considering nutritional value. In addition, preparatory work for digestion, bioavailability, satiety, and gut microbiome studies was done. The project established methodological frameworks for sustainability assessment, including Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), multicriteria assessment, Bayesian Belief Network scenario modelling, and integrated food-system modelling approaches. Preliminary analyses highlighted the importance of processing choices for sustainability performance and provided a basis for future environmental and economic assessments. Evidence on consumer acceptance of minimally processed plant-based foods was generated through interviews and large-scale surveys conducted in 8 European countries. The findings supported prototype development and market strategy planning. Preparatory intervention studies on consumer uptake were initiated. The project successfully developed and validated innovative minimal processing concepts, generated high-value minimally processed ingredients and food prototypes, established sustainability and nutritional assessment methodologies, and produced robust scientific datasets supporting future optimisation and scale-up activities.
