Discover the Top 12 Amazing Fun Facts About Soybeans You Never Knew!
1. Soybeans: Climate Change Fighters
Beans, beans, the magical fruit... wait, they're not actually fruit, but they sure are smart cookies with a green thumb! Soybeans and their rhizobia buddies not only help plants grow by providing nitrogen but also do their part in fighting climate change: Soybean rhizobia are able to reduce nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas, to nitrogen gas by using their special enzyme called N2O reductase. By enriching soils with these eco-warrior strains, we can significantly reduce harmful emissions from soybean fields—making a little legume a big hero in sustainable agriculture!
Source => frontiersin.org
2. Edamame vs. Mature Soybeans
Who knew soybeans had a split personality? From the green, youthful edamame to the wise, mature light cream color: these doppelgänger legumes offer different nutrition profiles. Edamame, the Peter Pan of soybeans, retains all its complete protein, calcium, vitamin C, and other nutrient riches, making it a vegan superhero nibble and a star of Japanese appetizers.
Source => myloveearth.com
Did you know George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were not just founding fathers, but also pioneers in agriculture? Discover their unexpected passion for composting and its impact on early American farming! 🌱
=> Fun Facts about Agriculture
3. Soy Fabric: Vegetable Cashmere
Move over, tofu fashionistas! There's a new soy on the scene that's anything but nutty: soy fabric, dubbed "vegetable cashmere" or "soy silk," is made from soy protein in soybean hulls and proudly struts its stuff as one of the world's most eco-friendly fabrics.
Source => sewport.com
4. Soybeans in Space
Who says astronauts can't enjoy a little bean farming action in outer space? Houston, we have soybeans: In 2002, the first-ever batch of soybean plants was grown and harvested aboard the International Space Station - studied by researchers in Wisconsin, these cosmic legumes gave insight into the effect of microgravity on their chemical make-up, with the potential of revolutionizing the soybean industry.
Source => scienceblog.com
5. Soy Milk: Dairy's Arch-Nemesis
If dairy milk had an arch-nemesis, it might just be soy milk, veiled in a heroic cape of calcium and battling for your bones' allegiance: Some soy or almond milks are fortified with calcium to match the amount found in dairy milk, but beware, soy has a sneaky sidekick called phytate that hampers calcium absorption, so your body won't benefit from all that calcium goodness.
Source => newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org
6. Soybeans: Complete Protein Maestros
You know what they say, beans beans, the musical fruit – but let's give a standing ovation to the versatile soybean that plays a complete symphony in the nutrition orchestra: Soybeans proudly boast all essential amino acids required for human growth and development, earning them the prestigious title of a complete protein source. Encore!
Source => ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
7. Global Soybean Wars
When it comes to international bean wars, it's less "All About That Bass" and more "All About Those Soybeans!": Brazil and Argentina are on track to beat the United States in soybean production, making the US market legume and beholden to its southern neighbors as 80% of the world's soybeans come from these three countries.
Source => ag.purdue.edu
8. The Biodiesel Bean Dilemma
Hold your horses, eco-warriors, and don't spill the beans just yet: making biodiesel from soybeans is both pricier and less efficient than good ol' petroleum diesel, taking a backseat to ethanol, and roping our planet into deforestation shenanigans when innocent food crops get evicted for fuel-hungry beans to move in.
Source => npr.org
9. Protein-Packed Land Saviors
Hold on to your Tofurky hats, soy-strokers: Soybeans provide 100 times more protein per acre compared to beef production, making them a lean, green, protein-packed machine! This incredible switcheroo could decrease global land use for agriculture by 75%, gifting Mother Earth a delightful combo of increased biodiversity and carbon sequestration.
Source => ourworldindata.org
10. Nitrogen-Fixing Superhero Beans
Here's some shocking "bean"eficial news for you: Soybeans are the nitrogen-fixing superheroes of the crop world! Funny enough, by growing them alongside corn or wheat, farmers can reduce their nitrogen fertilizer use by up to 30 pounds per acre: That's because these leguminous little wonders have the power to grab nitrogen from the air and pump it into the soil, adding up to 50 pounds of nitrogen per acre, ultimately creating a sustainable and nutritious environment for future crops in rotation.
Source => extension.missouri.edu
11. Soybeans: Career Chameleon
If soybeans had a resume, it would read like that of a career chameleon who's secretly a superhero, saving both your dinner table's taste and the planet's needs: Soybeans miraculously transform into over 16,000 different products, from tofu and soy milk to ink and crayons, dominating the world as the versatile king of crops and making the US the largest soybean producer on Earth.
Source => todayifoundout.com
12. Soybean-Based Eco-Plastics
Whoever said using soybeans is just for hippies and health nuts clearly never got their hands on plastic made from the protein-packed bean! Just imagine your kumbaya-loving, soy latte-drinking friend now swapping their disposable cutlery and straws for a greener lifestyle: Soy protein plastics are eco-friendly, capable of being processed on conventional plastic equipment, making them a renewable, biodegradable, and energy-saving alternative to traditional fossil fuel-based plastics. So, go ahead and embrace the soybean wave for a sustainable future!
Source => cfpub.epa.gov
