Soybeans and soy foods

NAKAMURA Y, TSUJi s and TONOGAi Y (2000) Determination of the levels of isoflavonoids in soybeans and soy-derived foods and estimation of isoflavonoids in the Japanese daily intake. JAOAC Int. 83 (3) 635-50. 

At least five European contemporaries of Marco Polo visited China. They were John of Pian de Capine [1246 ce], William of Rubruck [1254 ce], John of Monte Corvino [1305 ce], Odoric of Pordenone [1323 ce], and John de Marginolli [1342 ce]. All were Franciscans. Their mission in China was to try to convett the royal family and save souls. Except for William, the Franciscan missionaries hardly mentioned plants in the course of their travels (Bretschneider, 1962 Komroff, 1928 Olschki, 1943 Yule 1866 2002). William of Rubruck was an exception. A keen observer of Chinese culture and foods consumed, he was the first Westerner to suggest the soybean or soy foods. In 1254 he wrote, The monk said he only ate on Sunday, when this lady sent him a meal of cooked dough with vinegar to drink. Rockhill (1900), the translator, noted that the dish called mien by the Chinese is the most common article of diet in northern China and Mongolia. The vinegar or soy is used to season the water in which the paste has been cooked and is drunk as a soup. Rubruck never mentioned soy. However, the dish called mien as noted by Rockhill is often flavored with soy sauce. Thus, this is an indirect mention of the use of a soy product. 

In the late 1800s, when the demand for coated paper for the halftone printing process increased, casein rapidly replaced glue. Casein forms a hard, tough film when dry, and can be waterproofed easily with formaldehyde (qv). The properties of soy protein are similar to those of casein, and soy protein has been substituted for it in many types of coated papers requiring a casein-type binder (see Soybeans and other oilseeds). Casein, a valuable food product, is seldom used as a paper adhesive, in spite of its excellent adhesive properties. 

MESSINA M, GUGGER E T and ALEKEL D L (2001) Soy protein, soybean isoflavones, and bone health a review of the animal and human data. In Wildman REC, Handbook of Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods, Boca Raton, CRC Press EEC, 77-98. 

Based on processing technology, the soybean foods that have been consumed in East Asia may be classified into two general types non-fermented and fermented (2-8) as shown in Table I. Names of these foods and the details of preparing and serving such foods may vary from country to country. Among them, soybean curd (tofu) and soy sauce have been the most widely consumed in the Orient. 

Young, L. S. "Soy Protein Products in Processed Meat and Dairy Foods", Presented at World Soybean Research Conference, Ames, IA, 1984. 

By 2006, the U.S. had 77 ethanol plants producing more than 3 billion gallons of ethanol per year. Canada produced an additional 60 million gallons. Corn was the feedstock in 62 of the 77 U.S. plants. Other feedstocks included seed corn, corn and barley, corn and beverage waste, brewery waste, cheese whey, corn and milo, corn and wheat starch, potato waste and various sugars. The U.S. had 11 additional plants under construction and 55 proposed. West Central Soy processes soybeans to a food grade oil. Alcohol and a catalyst are then used to produce biodiesel fuel and glycerin. 

Isoflavonoids include the isoflavones genistein and daidzein, which occur mainly as the glycosides genistin and daidzin (see Figure 7.2), respectively, in soybeans and consequently in a wide range of soy-derived foods and to a lesser extent in other legumes. Traditional... 

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