GlobalData: Mung beans offer manufacturers a new route into high-protein plant-based foods

GlobalData has identified mung beans as a commercially attractive opportunity for food manufacturers as consumer demand for high-protein foods continues to grow and bean and pulse volumes are forecast to outpace meat growth through 2030.

• GlobalData forecast bean and pulse volumes to grow at a five-year CAGR of 1.7% through 2030, compared with 0.7% for meat volumes.
• The company reported that 36% of consumers planned to increase protein intake over the next 12 months, while 50% expected no change.
• Mung beans offered around 27g of protein per 100g and had functional properties suited to plant-based egg and bakery applications.

The intelligence and productivity platform reported that health and wellness priorities were continuing to support demand for protein-rich foods. While meat remained the most familiar protein source for many consumers, GlobalData said legumes, including beans and pulses, were gaining attention as consumers looked for foods capable of delivering protein levels comparable with meat.

According to GlobalData, volumes in the beans and pulses sector are forecast to expand at a five-year compound annual growth rate of 1.7% through 2030. That compares with a 0.7% CAGR for meat volumes over the same period. The company said this pattern was expected across all continents except Latin America, where meat volumes were forecast to outpace beans and pulses.

The trend comes as dietary guidance increasingly encourages consumers to diversify protein sources. The American Heart Association has recommended that consumers choose healthy sources of protein and shift away from meats toward plant-based options such as beans, peas and lentils to support cardiovascular health.
Eve Forshaw, Consumer Analyst at GlobalData, said the advice aligned with changing consumer behavior around protein.

“Consumers are interested in protein and value its health benefits; the AHA’s advice aligns with the emerging trend of ‘ZEBRA’ consumption, whereby consumers alternate between meat- and plant-based proteins to achieve a more balanced dietary profile,” Forshaw said.

GlobalData’s Q1 2026 global survey found that 50% of consumers planned to consume the same amount of protein over the following 12 months, while 36% planned to increase their intake. The company also reported that protein content was being used as a health cue on packaging. In its Q1 2025 global survey, 32% of consumers said they looked for protein on packaging when deciding how healthy a product was.

However, animal proteins remained much more familiar to consumers than plant-based sources. GlobalData’s Q1 2025 survey found that only 7% of consumers were unfamiliar with both chicken and meat protein. By contrast, 13% were unfamiliar with soy protein, 21% with pea protein and 38% with hemp protein.

Forshaw said that gap in familiarity had not stopped demand from building. “Despite lower familiarity with plant protein sources, there is a growing appetite for protein-rich plant-based foods,” she said.

GlobalData highlighted mung beans as a particularly strong opportunity within the pulses category. The ingredient offers around 27g of protein per 100g, placing it close to chicken and red meat on a protein-content basis. It is also already used in a variety of dishes and recipes, giving it an advantage as a recognizable whole-food ingredient as well as a functional protein source.

Beyond their use as whole beans, mung beans also have properties that allow them to be used in other product formats. GlobalData pointed to their role in plant-based scrambled egg substitutes, where mung bean protein isolate can help deliver the texture and structure expected from egg-based products.

The Eat Just Food Company, based in San Francisco, has conducted scientific tests on protein isolate extracted from mung beans and found that it had the gelation property associated with eggs, helping provide the structure and texture needed for scrambled egg applications. The isolate also showed the ability to thicken, emulsify and bind in foods such as omelets, pancakes and some baked goods.

For manufacturers, that combination of nutrition and functionality gives mung beans a broader role than some other plant-based ingredients. As whole beans, they can serve as a cupboard staple for consumers seeking higher-protein plant foods. As an isolate, they can support product development in plant-based eggs and adjacent food categories that rely on binding, thickening or emulsification.

GlobalData reported that the AHA guidance and the rise of ZEBRA consumption pointed to a wider shift toward diversified protein choices, with consumers increasingly balancing meat and plant-based protein sources rather than necessarily replacing one with the other.

Forshaw said mung beans were well placed to benefit from that shift. “Mung beans stand out as a commercially attractive offering: they deliver meat-comparable protein levels in whole-food forms while also having properties like gelation, emulsification, and binding in their protein isolate,” she said. “For manufacturers and investors, this dual role, cupboard whole-bean staple, plus functional use for plant-based eggs and adjacent applications, makes mung beans an exciting route to capture the next phase of plant-based protein growth.”