The aim of LOCALNUTLEG project is to empower local Mediterranean nuts and legumes with quality characteristics that depend exclusively on the territory on which they are produced through the development of innovative plant-based food products, fermented or not. To do so, LOCALNUTLEG will promote local Mediterranean nuts and legumes with a legal registered trademark (Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) orProtected Geographical Indication (PGI)) or autochthonous identity and will represent a potential opportunity toMediterranean countries to balance the sustainability of Agri-food resources and dietary habits considering the economical and health impact of the new developed products. The project aims to develop innovative food productsby the identification of local nut and legumes varieties tied to Mediterranean gastronomic culture, providing the maximum amount of nutrients and bioactive compounds, and to promote Mediterranean diet through plant-based
food products. Hence, LOCALNUTLEG will answer to the current consumers’ demands in terms of healthiness, convenience, ease of preparation, taste, proximity and also the strong growth in vegetarianism, the high demand for plant-based meat analogues rich in protein, the religious considerations having a significant impact in the development of prepared plant food and the increase in the launching of products to cover metabolic diseases and allergies such as lactose or cow's milk protein and gluten intolerance1. In the frame of the Mediterranean diet, which is considered one of the most beneficial to human health, LOCALNUTLEG alternative-protein and plant-based products will also help to re-design traditional Mediterranean recipes in order to satisfy the above-mentioned consumers’ demands. LOCALNUTLEG will work under the concept of a multiactor approach consortium formed by researchers, food processing SMEs and cooperatives.
