FOREWORD

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The phenomenal economic growth in Asia and the Pacific in recent decades hasresulted in significant improvements in living conditions in the region, as reflected in people expanded choices of the food they eat. Lifestyle changes have also occurred due to other factors, including increased interest in better health. All of these developments have contributed to major shifts in food consumption patterns, and more people are expressing a preference for healthier foods. In this context, legumes are playing an increasingly important role as people rediscover their high nutritive value and health-enhancing features.

Soybeans, for example, are the most common legume and are now being hailed as the miracle food of the future. Recent claims about their anticarcinogenic effects are stirring global interest in the commodity. Several processing and packing technologies are now being developed to maximize the potential of soybeans. Soy-based food initiatives are being pursued to address nutritional issues such as the development of low-cost, soy-fortified or -blended food, promotion of soy milk in school lunch programs, and fortification of soy saucewith iron.

The potential of legumes for meeting food requirements is great. However, in addition to developing the technologies for manufacturing legume-based products that are acceptable to consumers, there is also a need to undertake innovative marketing efforts and to educate the public about their benefits.

To discuss the present situation of legume processing and utilization in member countries and to identify measures to add more value-adding processes to legume products, the Asian Productivity Organization (APO) organized a Seminar on Processing and Utilization of Legumes from 9 to 14 October 2000 in Japan. This publication is a compilation of the papers and proceedings of the seminar. I hope that it will serve as a useful reference on the subject in APO member countries.

The APO is grateful to the Government of Japan for hosting the seminar, in particular to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries for providing financial and technical assistance, to the Association for International Cooperation of Agriculture and Forestry for implementing the program, and to the resource speakers for their valuable contributions. Special thanks are due to Dr. Sundar Shanmugasundaram for editing the present volume.

TAKASHI TAJIMA
Secretary-General
Tokyo, March 2003