Beans, peas, and lentils: who holds the power over pulses?

Beans, peas and lentils are often highlighted as key ingredients for healthier and more sustainable diets. Yet despite growing awareness, pulses still play a small role in Swedish food consumption today.

In her PhD thesis, Centre researcher Mary Scheuermann explores why shifting diets is not simply a matter of changing consumer behaviour. Instead, she examines how power and responsibility are spread across the food system.

“People often focus on consumers, but our food system is not designed for health and sustainability,” says Scheuermann. “It is designed for productivity and profit.”

Sweden has a long history of growing and eating pulses, especially yellow peas. But over generations, knowledge about how to prepare and cook pulses has faded, while consumer norms have shifted.

Still, Scheuermann says it is difficult to place responsibility mainly on individuals.

“Our everyday choices as consumers reflect our habits and current social norms,” she says. “We say we want to eat healthier and more sustainably, and norms can change, but we also need ongoing support and opportunities in our everyday choices.”

Little incentive for change

Her research shows that many actors in the food system see other actors as having the most influence over changes to support dietary shifts. For example, Sweden continues to favour livestock production within the Common Agricultural Policy although many other countries are shifting to emphasize plant proteins for food.

One actor group with largely overlooked potential is food processors.

Scheuermann points out that Sweden currently lacks infrastructure even for relatively simple pulse processing. Swedish-grown beans are often shipped to Italy for boiling and canning before returning to Swedish supermarkets.

“There is a clear infrastructure gap,” she says. “Particularly from a preparedness perspective, there are strong reasons to build more processing capacity in Sweden or jointly with other Nordic countries.”

At the same time, investment has increasingly focused on processed meat substitute products rather than simpler pulse products.

Power also means responsibility

The thesis also examines how power operates within food systems. Scheuermann studies who has influence, who shapes agendas, and which actors have the strongest connections across the food chain.

She argues that powerful actors should also carry responsibility for transforming the system.

“If you benefit from a food system with negative effects on health and the environment, then you also have a responsibility to help change it,” she says.

But moral arguments alone rarely drive transformation, she adds. Many actors benefit from the current system and have little incentive to change it. Meanwhile, debates around dietary change and plant-based food have become increasingly polarised.

Scheuermann believes broader collaboration and more diversity among actors could help support change. She also points to local initiatives as a possible path forward. Some Swedish municipalities are linking schools with local food. These efforts take time and resources, she says, but may help build wider acceptance for dietary change.

“I do not think pulses alone will change the world,” she says. “But they can play an important role in creating healthier and more sustainable food systems.”