Peanut butter and jelly, deli meat and cheese, and avocado mash all need a carrier, and bread is typically the delivery vehicle. However, for a growing number of consumers, it’s not a simple loaf of white or honey wheat. It’s a value-added option that provides extra nutrition and protein.

“Protein is a key nutrient that consumers are increasingly looking for in their daily diet, and the addition of protein can boost the nutritional profile of bread,” said Catherine Hogan, category marketing lead, bakery, bars and confectionary, IFF. “Consumer benefits include enhanced satiety to help keep fuller for longer periods and reducing appetite and cravings, all without feeling guilty or compromising health and wellness goals.”

Many bakers are opting to fortify with plant proteins to appeal to vegans and flexitarians. Some have started exploring the emerging category of next-generation proteins that mimic animal proteins but are made without animals. With both, bakers must remember quality matters when it comes to making protein content claims.

Formulation considerations

Protein is vital to support the health and well-being of humans. However, not all proteins are alike, as they vary in their individual amino acid composition and their level of amino acid bioactivity, among other attributes.

High-quality proteins are readily digestible and contain the dietary essential amino acids in quantities that correspond to human requirements. Currently, protein quality is measured using the Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS), where values can reach a maximum score of 1.00. Milk, casein, whey, eggs and soy protein all have a maximum score.

This is not to be confused with complete protein, which defines proteins that contain all nine of the essential amino acids and can be fully utilized by the body during the protein synthesis. Animal proteins and quinoa are complete, but most plant proteins are not, which is why bakers often blend plant proteins to create one that is complete.

Bakers should identify any protein claims they want to make before setting out to formulate a recipe. Protein claims labeled as “good” or “excellent” refer to the amount of complete protein in the product. For a good claim, the bread must contain 10% to 19% of the Daily Value for protein. For an excellent claim, it’s 20% or more.

The percent Daily Value for protein is determined using PDCAAS. This translates to 5 grams or 10 grams of complete protein per serving for each respective claim. When making or implying any protein content claim, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires the inclusion of the percent Daily Value.

For example, a bread containing 10 grams of complete protein may make an “excellent source of protein” claim. A bread with 10 grams of protein from peas and nuts — incomplete proteins — most likely only qualifies for a “good source of protein” claim, and when doing so, should not flag 10 grams of protein per serving, as this is misleading.

“Consumer research shows that most consumers aren’t aware of or aren’t able to distinguish that proteins have differences in protein quality,” said Kimberlee Burrington, vice president of technical development, American Dairy Products Institute. “We use the Nutrition Facts panel to communicate the grams per serving of protein, but the only way to show a difference in protein quality is by using the percent Daily Value. Most products that don’t claim anything about the level of protein on the product will not show anything in the percent Daily Value column.”

Bimbo Bakeries USA, Horsham, Pa., makes numerous protein claims on its new Grains Almighty Plant Protein Bread. For starters, front labels state that a serving contains 9 grams of protein, some of which comes from sprouted wheat, pea protein and chickpea flour. The Nutrition Facts state that the 9 grams are 12% of the Daily Value for protein.

The only reason the bread may flag the amount of protein on the front label is because it discloses the percent Daily Value. Further, even if the formula was adjusted with an additional gram of plant protein, the Daily Value would not increase 8% to allow for an excellent claim. This is why protein quality matters.

This article is an excerpt from the June 2024 issue of Baking & Snack. To read the entire feature on Protein, click here.