Nutritional value The soybean is very rich in dietary components. In addition to the very high content of protein , a soybean contains a lot of fiber and is she rich in calcium and magnesium. The soy protein has a high biological value and contains all the essential amino acids. Soybeans are rich in unsaturated fat acids and are low in saturated fat acids, which should be avoided.
Cultivation Soy is one of the most important agricultural crops, but it is typical southern. There are many reasons, both social and environmental, for soy to grow in Europe. The most important is the dependence of our cattle on the gigantic import. That import will never be reduced to zero. The climate in Northern Europe remains a sticking point. Soy requires plenty of warm and sunny growth days. In addition, soy is very sensitive to frost. Until 1995 the USA was the main manufacturer and exporter of soy. Since 1995 extends the soybean cultivation in Southern America very strongly.
Environment To make room for the fairly simple production of soy, soy farmers are cutting down forests. Deforestation reduces biodiversity and contributes to global warming. Soy is also often produced as monoculture. This make the soil completely infertile, making soy farmers less and less productive. They are using more and more pesticides and fertilizers. This end up in the soil and in the drinking water, which is harmful to people and the environment.
Serious social and environmental problems are resulting, such as decreased food security, expropriation of land, damage to nature reserves, deforestation, erosion and water pollution by agricultural chemicals. In addition, the soya bean is often talk of the town because of GMOs. For that reason, European manufacturers are more and more avoid the of soy oil in foods. However, high rates of feed contains genetically modified soya.
