The Hindu Business Line : There is more to protein than pulses

Proteins — linear polymers built from 20 different amino acids, whose name is derived from the Greek word "prota" which means "of primary importance" — are of great importance to the human body as they perform vital biological functions such as cell signalling, immune responses, cell adhesion and the crucial "cell cycle. Not many may know that enzyme insulin — and an eponymous medicine — that regulates the sugar balance in the body, is a protein. The human body, incapable of bio-synthesising all the 20 amino acids by itself, depends on external sources. Thus the importance of protein in human diet.

Changing Sources

Human body absorbs proteins from such food items as milk and milk products, cereals, eggs, meat, and legumes. Given the body's need for the various amino acids, nutritionists advocate the intake of a mix of dietary sources. A recent study by the Food and Drugs Administration of the US, called the Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acids Score (PDCAAS), to assess the biological value of different protein combinations from single sources, concluded that, in general, animal products that contain all essential amino acids and the complete vegetable protein of soybean offer maximum value. This shows the need for human diet to move towards animal sources of protein, not necessarily meat, but animal-origin products such as eggs, milk and milk products, and soybean rather than depending only on a basket of pulses.

An analysis of the protein consumption in India reflects a similar shift (see Table). There has been an increased intake of protein through animal sources and soybean in recent years; the average intake of protein had remained stagnant despite an increase in the nominal prices of these sources taken together.

From the Table it is clear that the quality of protein intake in the country has only improved despite the higher prices of pulses as the population shifted to the high biological value animal protein sources such as milk, eggs, meat and soybean.

The total consumption of protein per capita through major sources indicates that protein consumption remained more or less stagnant, while the per capita expenditure on these food items declined by 11.1 per cent in real terms. This indicates that the proportion of the spend in maintaining protein intake has not increased over the years. However, the declining real spend indicates the upside potential for pulses prices. This could encourage investment in technology, and the scope for increasing its availability to augment dietary intake of protein.

Most nutritionists believe that physical exertion, targeted muscular-mass increase, childhood growth and development, and recovery from a trauma are the only situations when the body needs higher protein intake. With industrialisation, mechanisation and the development of information-communication technologies, the need for physical exertion and thus, dietary protein intake has gradually declined. This shows that there is nothing much to worry on the protein intake levels, and the government should now focus on the availability of high-value animal protein and soybean to promote healthy intake of proteins rather than harp on the non-issue of declining accessibility to pulses for the poor due to rising pulses prices.

The concern that prices were rising due to speculation in the futures market is unfounded with tur and urad prices remaining stable even a month after the ban on futures trading in these two commodities. Moreover, the prices at which the commodities are traded on commodity exchanges are wholesale prices at which farmers are expected to sell their produce thus ensuring a fair price for their produce.

Banning futures would only leave the farmers to operate in a "vacuum" leading to fattening market margins in the case of pulses which are already 90-130 per cent though the cost attributed to economic value addition such as processing, storage, transportation etc. from farm to the plate is minimal.

(The authors are Chief Economist and Senior Analyst with the Multi Commodity Exchange of India Limited, Mumbai. The views are personal.)

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