Boosting Soybean Protein - Zinc and Sulfur Essential in Sustainable Crop Production

By Tannara Yelland

Soybean is a critical element of the global food supply: Between its use for animal feed and human consumption, it accounts for roughly two-thirds of plant-based protein meal output worldwide. Canada is a global leader in sustainable soybean production, with 70% of its crop, one of the country's top three by value, exported annually.

According to Brazilian scientist Gabriel Montanha, soy production has "exploded" in recent decades to meet demand—but there hasn't been a corresponding increase in soybean protein content. "To ensure soy remains a sustainable crop, we need to increase the protein content of soy seeds," says Montanha, who is doing a postdoctoral fellowship at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) in Grenoble, France. "It's critical we find ways to generate more protein without increasing the amount of land we're currently cultivating."

Minerals linked to protein levels

Montanha and colleagues used the Canadian Light Source (CLS) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) and Brazil's National Synchrotron Light Laboratory (LNLS) to determine whether the mineral content of soybean seeds could influence their nutritional content. With the help of synchrotron imaging, the researchers investigated the location of proteins and minerals inside four types of soybean seeds. They found that certain minerals appear to play a crucial role in protein formation.

"We could see that the genotypes that had higher protein content also had higher zinc and sulfur," says Montanha, who completed this research as part of his Ph.D., alongside collaborators at Brazil's University of São Paulo and Sapienza University of Rome (Italy). The team's findings were published in the journal ACS Agricultural Science & Technology and highlighted on the cover of the journal's current issue.