By: Robin Kuleck, RN, MSEd., Senior Extension Educator
Penn State Extension
The United Nations has declared 2016 as the International Year of Pulses. I’m guessing this is the first time you heard this news or this use of the word “pulses.”
The first time I heard this information was in November when I attended a professional association meeting. So what is a pulse and why is it so important that the United Nations felt the need to dedicate an entire year to it?
Pulse comes from the Latin word “puls,” which means a thick soup. If you’ve consumed split pea soup, you’ve encountered pulses. Pulses are the dried edible seeds of plants in the legume family.
Legumes? What are they? More than 13,000 species of legumes have been identified and their identifying feature is that their fruit is enclosed in a pod.
Additionally, growing legumes fix nitrogen in the soil, reducing the need for chemical fertilizers. Some well-known legumes include alfalfa, clover, lupins and mesquite. Edible legumes you might be familiar with include peas, soy and peanuts.
As a subcategory of legumes, pulses are the dried seeds – most common are dried peas, beans, lentils and chickpeas. These plant products are very high in protein and fiber with the benefit of being low in fat.
Additionally they are excellent sources of minerals such as iron, zinc, phosphorus, folate and other B vitamins. Pulses come in many sizes, shapes and colors and can be prepared and consumed in numerous ways.
They can be used whole or split, ground into flours or even separated into component parts of protein, fiber and starch. While they aren’t quite a miracle food, their many attributes make them suitable for people across the globe as inexpensive and yet healthy nutritious meals.
As very cheap sources of protein, they reduce the environmental footprint since the amount of natural and human resources necessary to produce them are greatly reduced compared to animal sources of protein.
As nitrogen-fixing crops (they pull nitrogen from the air and return it to the soil), they are environmentally sustainable in that they replenish soil nutrients, reducing the need for farmers to apply expensive, artificial fertilizers.
Pulses can be grown across the globe in many environments where even subsistence farmers can produce high quality protein for their family and to sell at market.
So why is the United Nations putting such emphasis on pulses in 2016? The world’s growing population will require an estimated 70 percent increase in agricultural production by 2050.
Pulses are a staple and primary source of protein for much of the world’s population with more than half of all global pulse production occurring in developing countries. Pulses can serve four roles – as a rotation crop, fodder, cash and food.
Pulse production across the globe means that they don’t have to travel great distances to fulfill domestic requirements – reducing the carbon footprint and cost making them accessible to nearly everyone.
Here’s an example of how inexpensive these sources of high quality protein can be.
In the United States, a serving of lentils costs $.10 while a serving of poultry is $.63, $.73 for pork and $1.40 for beef. Take into account the amount of labor, land, water and feed it takes to produce animal protein and you can quickly see the economic as well as environmental benefits of plant based protein as a food source. It takes an estimated 1,857 gallons of water to produce a pound of beef and just 43 gallons to produce a pound of pulses!
So, how can you add pulses to your menu? Replace up to half the meat in a recipe with cooked lentils. Chickpeas make great additions to salads, sandwich spreads and pasta. Homemade hummus can be used as a vegetable dip or filler for pita sandwiches.
The Northern Pulse Growers Association has numerous tips and recipes using their commodity at its Web site www.northernpulse.com. My Extension co-workers in North Dakota also have several publications available on their Web site that might stimulate your creative cooking juices into adding pulses into your menus on their Web site at www.ag.ndsu.edu/food and search for “pulses.”
The Women’s Health Task Force is a small group volunteering their time to educate women and families on important health issues. If you have an interest in health, work in a caring profession, or just want to volunteer with other sincere women, consider attending our planning meetings.
These meetings are held the first Thursday of each month beginning at noon. Our next meeting will be held on Thursday, April 7 at Clearfield County Career & Technology Center.
All interested persons are encouraged to attend. Additional information is available by calling Robin Kuleck, Penn State Extension, at 814-765-7878 Ext.2. Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/whtfclearfieldcounty.