Soy protein has saved thousands of lives- as a fire extinguishing foam in the U.S. Navy! In a book on science engineering, Howard B. Rockman tells us how Aero Foam was developed with soy protein and a paint and varnish company. Aero Foam would foam up and smother fires, making it a quick hit in the military during WW2.

It wasn’t the first time that innovators found industrial uses for soy, listed by the FDA as a poisonous plant. The plant was, after all, originally a soil fertilizer in ancient Asia. Only after fermenting processes were perfected- processes that removed the toxic chemicals- did it became edible. This is why miso making was such an important skill- it transformed a poison into a nourishing protein.

Soy is an industrial chemical used in plastics, varnishes, paints, glues, resins, cleaning supplies, pesticides, textiles, cosmetics, emulsifiers, extenders, pet food and pleather. No wonder it’s the world’s second biggest allergen.

SPI sludge, described as ‘defatted soy meal’ is used in soy “foods” like burgies and dogs, snack bars, protein powders and bodybuilding shakes, sports drinks, vitamins, even in meat, soups and cereals as an ‘extender, in yogurts, ice creams, and baby formula. It is cheerfully touted as a cholesterol-free, low-fat, high protein, isoflavone-rich, heart-healthy alternative to meat. The phytic acid- a mineral chelator which draws vital nutrients back out of the body- is glowingly described by proponents as a ‘phytochemical.’ Unconscionably, this garbage is prescribed to cancer and AIDS and immune compromised patients with high protein needs, and to famine victims. And to our babies, by an increasingly militant faction who willingly experiment with infant nutrition, out of ‘kindness’ to cows.

But what’s so wrong with defatted soy flour, anyhow? So what if it’s a key ingredient in industrial solvents- what could be wrong with a low-fat, high-protein flour?

Here’s a description of the process from patent pending 20090005544 “…Mixing a soy protein-containing material with an aqueous medium; removing the non-solubilized solids from the slurry to form an alkaline liquid containing solubilized soy protein; adjusting the pH of the solubilized soy protein liquid to between about 3.8 and about 6.6, to precipitate soy protein from the liquid; separating the precipitated soy protein from the pH-adjusted soy protein liquid; resolubilizing the separated soy protein precipitate in an aqueous medium at a pH of from about 1.8 to 3.2; treating the resolubilized soy protein with at least one water-soluble calcium salt to form…” Etc.

Finger lickin’ good…

Maybe none of that is so bad, even though it’s not exactly garden fresh. But most SPIs are bathed and refined in toxic chemicals like alcohol and hexane. Hexane is a hazardous cancer-causing neurotoxin, a petroleum refining byproduct. Soy processing is responsible for millions of pounds of toxic hexane emissions per annum. And we’re worried about cows farting?

Tragically, hexane is widely used in soy proteins filling our baby bottles. And so-called ‘organic’ soy is still guilty- industry standards vary, but if it’s give or take two-thirds hexane-free, the hexane in the rest is moot.

How did this all happen? How did we veer so far off course and decide that engineering made a healthier protein than hunting or farming?

Once again, money talks.

The primary industry for soybeans was that hydrogenated oil they convinced us momentarily was ‘heart healthy’ until we realized that we were being conned to death. Many governments declared “zero trans fats” the safe level of hydrogenated oil, some of which was made from coconut or palm, but most from soy. Most oils listed as innocuous ‘vegetable oil’ are soy oil.

Dr. Kaayla Daniel, author of The Whole Soy Story, told me, “It’s all about money. Soybeans were first heavily grown in the U.S. for the soy oil… once processors took the oil out of the soybean, they had a lot of soy protein left over. The question was whether they should take it to the landfill and pay to dump it or turn it into another profit center. Soy protein would make an excellent fertilizer, but unfortunately the chemical fertilizer companies had that market cornered. It is used as a primary ingredient in animal foods, but there are limits on how much they can safely feed to animals…It was initially hard to sell people on the idea of eating soy because it was perceived as either a poverty food or a hippie food. Then marketing experts changed the image of soy to an upscale ‘health food.’

Well, bon appetit.