Miller Magazine Issue: 128 August 2020

59 INTERVIEW MILLER / August 2020 We have an important guest for Miller Magazine’s August issue: Ms. Cindy Brown, the President of Global Pulse Confederation (GPC). GPC is the peak body of the global pulse industry. It represents all segments of the pulse industry value chain from growers, researchers, lo- gistics suppliers, traders, exporters and importers to gov- ernment bodies, multilateral organizations, processors, canners and consumers. The GPC is the sole international confederation for the pulses industry, facilitating free and fair trade and increasing production and consumption of pulse crops worldwide. It has 24 national association members and over 500 private company members. Ms. Brown was elected GPC President in June 2019. She leads an Executive Committee of over 30 interna- tional members. She answered Miller Magazine’s ques- tions on the mission of the GPC, the importance of pulses in terms of world food security, and Covid-19 impact on the pulses market. She said COVID-19 has had a signif- icant impact on pulses markets. “The billions of people around the world who have been in lockdown have be- come more conscious of the foods they are eating, and many are seeking out healthy, shelf-stable foods like pulses. With the pandemic causing new concerns about food supply chains, we expect more consumers to turn to plant-based proteins. And pulses will increasingly be the source for new plant-based products.” she comments. She expects that the global consumption of pulses will increase a minimum of 10% versus 2019. As the first woman President of the Global Pulse Confederation, Ms. Brown encourages more women to become involved in agriculture and the pulses industry. Ms. Brown, first of all, I want to thank you for ac- cepting our interview request…Could you please tell us about your background? How did you get into the pulse industry? My background is in agriculture. I grew up on the fam- ily farm and have been involved with the business since I was a kid really. In fact, I am still living in the house I grew up, which sits at the entrance to Chippewa Valley Bean. My father, Russell Doane, was the first President of Chippewa Valley Bean Company, and grew our first crop of kidney beans in 1969. I took over as President at Chippewa Valley Bean 10 years ago. And, I am proud to say that during that time we have grown the company by more than 200%. And I am equally proud that in June 2019, I became the first woman President of the Global Pulse Confederation. Could you give us some information about the Global Pulse Confederation? What is the mission of GPC? GPC has served the global pulse industry for more than 50 years. GPC has 24 national association members and over 500 private company members. GPC has a mission to create greater awareness and consumption of pulses, to enhance food security and environmental sustainabil- ity, and to improve market information and international market access for the benefit of the global pulse industry and pulse consumers. ‘WE ARE IN THE EARLY STAGES OF UNCOVERING THE TRUE MARKET POTENTIAL OF PULSES’ You define the pulses as “future of food”. Why do you think so? Yes, pulses truly are the “food of the future.” They are the future of food because they provide phenomenal nutrition. Research shows that populations that regularly consume pulses are shown to live longer. They are a low fat, high fibre sources of protein that are full of vitamins and minerals. And pulse fractions – particularly pulse proteins – are the up and coming stars of the food manufacturing sec- tor. From plant-based meats to pea-milk, snack foods and pet foods, we are really in the early stages of uncover- ing the true market potential of pulses. And equally im- portant, increased production and consumption of pulses helps address climate change because they have a low carbon footprint, enrich the soil and use less water than other major sources of protein. Do you think the world knows the nutritional ben- efits of pulses? What is GPC doing to raise awareness on this issue? In 2019, nearly 900 million people suffered from seri- ous malnutrition. At the same time, 600 million people were categorized as obese and 2 billion overweight. So, clearly the world’s leaders do not understand enough about the nutritional and health benefits of pulses. But GPC and its members have made tremendous progress in this area. The International Year of Pulses was a ma- jor achievement and helped bring much-needed atten- tion to the nutritional benefits of pulses. And now with World Pulses Day taking place each February 10, we have a great annual opportunity, along with our partner UN FAO, to remind the world of the tremendous nutritional and other benefits of pulses. How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected the pulse markets? COVID-19 has had a significant impact on pulses mar- kets. The billions of people around the world who have been in lockdown have become more conscious of the foods they are eating, and many are seeking out healthy, shelf-stable foods like pulses. Consumer demand for bulk, packaged and canned pulses has been particular- ly strong. However, there has also been a decrease in demand in certain sectors such as hotel, restaurant and institutional (HRI) trade. The number of people who are vegans or flexitarian is growing. The plant-based meat made from pulses is becoming popular. Can you share some information on the growing plant-based protein market and your