Market Overview
Size, feedstock, and processing scope
- Brevintel analysis values the global pea flour market at USD 22.2 billion in 2025 ($22.2B), rising to USD 25.2 billion in 2026 and USD 76.1 billion by 2035 at approximately 13% CAGR during 2026–2035.
- Headline cards list $22.2B (2025), $31.12B (2035 yellow-pea forecast card), and 13% CAGR; the $31.12B card aligns with yellow pea flour’s projected USD 31.12 billion by 2035, while total market narrative reaches USD 76.1 billion.
- Roquette Frères led with over 11.2% market share in 2025; Roquette Frères, Ingredion Incorporated, AGT Food and Ingredients, Emsland Group, and Grain Millers collectively held 48.8%.
- Dry field peas (yellow and green Pisum sativum) are cleaned, dehulled, and milled into whole flour or fractionated into protein- and starch-enriched streams, typically with 12–25% protein plus starch and fiber.
- Canada produced 3.93 million tonnes of dry peas in 2025, up 31.6% from 2024, with Alberta and Saskatchewan accounting for more than 93% of output.
- U.S. dry pea harvested area expanded to an estimated 1.063 million acres in 2025, producing approximately 18.48 million hundredweight.
- Emsland Group processes more than 160,000 tonnes of peas annually at Emlichheim and Golßen, supplying flour, starches, and proteins into food, industrial, and feed markets.
- Optimized air-classification and electrostatic-separation sequences have produced yellow-pea fractions containing up to 63.4 g of protein per 100 g on a dry basis; dry fractionation can exceed 54% protein under optimized conditions.
- The U.S. FDA has issued “no questions” responses for pea-protein GRAS notices including GRN 581 and GRN 1125; gluten-free claims require less than 20 ppm gluten under FDA rules.
- Brevintel analysis finds expansion depends on crop availability, processing capability, and formulation economics rather than a single consumer trend.
Value pool and regulatory pathways
- Whole flour remains relevant in bakery, snacks, and feed on cost and simplicity; premium growth depends on protein enrichment, cleaner sensory profiles, and application support.
- In Europe, high-purity pea protein concentrate has been identified as not novel under the EU novel-food consultation process, while pea and rice protein fermented by Lentinula edodes mycelia has been authorized as a novel food.
- Roquette’s Portage la Prairie site was designed to process up to 125,000 metric tonnes of yellow peas annually, illustrating industrial scale directed at pea-derived protein systems.
- Industry data shows processors near major growing regions reduce exposure to fragmented specialty-nut flour supply chains.
- Brevintel analysis concludes regulatory clarity lowers commercialization risk but does not eliminate the need to prove taste, texture, and cost performance in finished products.
Market Dynamics
Key drivers
- Plant-derived protein demand moves pea flour beyond a low-cost pulse role into plant-based meat, baked goods, and high-protein snacks that need protein, starch, and texture together.
- Roquette’s February 2026 NUTRALYS Pea 850F launch focused on sensory neutrality, expanding addressable beverage and mainstream food applications.
- A global meta-analysis estimated biopsy-confirmed celiac disease prevalence at 0.7%, with seroprevalence at 1.4%; self-reported non-coeliac gluten and wheat sensitivity averaged 10.3% across underlying studies.
- Pea flour offers a protein-bearing alternative to starch-heavy gluten-free bases when manufacturers control cross-contact and meet labeling thresholds.
- In a randomized crossover study, bread containing 20% yellow pea flour increased postprandial fullness by 18% and reduced hunger by 16–18% versus control wheat bread.
- Research in overweight and hypercholesterolaemic participants reported lower fasting insulin and insulin resistance after whole and fractionated yellow pea flour versus white-wheat controls.
- EU food-information rules do not list peas among allergens requiring mandatory declaration, although product-specific labeling obligations remain.
- Brevintel analysis treats gluten-free formulation and satiety-oriented nutrition as durable demand bases alongside plant-protein systems.
Key restraints
- Pea flour competes with rice, chickpea, oat, lentil, soy, coconut, and almond flours that carry established sensory, regional, or premium advantages.
- Hexanal and other lipid-oxidation volatiles contribute beany, grassy, and earthy notes that vary by cultivar, harvest, origin, storage, and processing route.
- High-inclusion bakery, beverages, and dairy alternatives may need fermentation, thermal treatment, extrusion, or masking systems that raise complexity and cost.
- Pea flour does not replicate wheat-gluten networks; high substitution rates can affect loaf volume, crumb structure, viscosity, and mouthfeel.
- Manufacturers may need starches, hydrocolloids, emulsifiers, or reformulation time, favoring suppliers that pair ingredients with application expertise.
- Brevintel analysis finds the principal restraint is the gap between nutritional promise and finished-product performance, not a shortage of plant-based demand.
- Competitive flours can displace pea flour when they reduce development risk, especially in sensory-sensitive beverages or familiar regional foods.
- Technologies that lower volatile compounds or enrich native protein can raise inclusion levels and lift value beyond commodity flour substitution.
Segmentation Analysis
By type
- Yellow pea flour led with USD 8.97 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 31.12 billion ($31.12B) by 2035 at a 13.61% CAGR, aided by pale color, broad crop base, and balanced starch-protein composition.
- AGT Food and Ingredients supplies yellow pea flour under non-GMO and gluten-free specifications suited to standardized food manufacturing.
- Green pea flour was valued at USD 5.44 billion in 2025; color can constrain neutral applications but differentiates savory snacks, pasta, and visibly plant-forward products.
- Marrowfat pea flour is forecast to grow fastest at 13.83% CAGR, reaching USD 16.08 billion by 2035 on starch-led texture for crisp, coated, and extruded snacks.
- Maple pea flour is projected to reach USD 10.72 billion by 2035 in specialty bakery and traditional-use niches.
- Brevintel analysis separates high-volume yellow-pea demand from smaller varieties that offer visual, starch, or regional culinary attributes.
By processing method
- Dry-milled pea flour accounted for USD 12.74 billion in 2025 and USD 14.42 billion in 2026, versus USD 9.46 billion and USD 10.83 billion for wet-processed flour.
- Dry milling (dehulling, milling, optional air classification) supports broad food, bakery, and feed demand with lower process complexity.
- Wet processing supports concentrates and isolates for protein fortification and higher-specification formulations.
- Ingredion’s partnership with Lantmännen is intended to add pea-protein-isolate capability in Sweden by 2027.
- Brevintel analysis reads the split as an application divide: dry milling serves scale and cost; wet processing serves purity, functionality, and premium pricing.
By application
- Food and beverages generated USD 11.20 billion in 2025 and are projected to reach USD 35.28 billion by 2035 at a 13.60% CAGR across bakery, pasta, snacks, meat alternatives, and beverages.
- Nutritional supplements represented USD 5.45 billion in 2025 and are forecast to reach USD 16.61 billion by 2035, supported by pea–grain protein blends for complementary amino-acid profiles.
- Animal feed accounted for USD 4.33 billion in 2025 across swine, poultry, aquaculture, and companion-animal formulations.
- The others category is projected to expand fastest at 14.77% CAGR, reaching USD 4.22 billion by 2035 in specialty pet food, bioplastics, and related starch- and fiber-based uses.
- Sensory performance is commercially decisive: low-inclusion snack success does not capture the same value as mainstream bakery or dairy-alternative capability.
By distribution channel
- Offline retail remained the leading channel at USD 16.54 billion in 2025 and USD 18.79 billion in 2026, reflecting bulk procurement by manufacturers, distributors, and foodservice customers.
- AGT’s reach across 127 countries and 39 manufacturing facilities illustrates the importance of physical supply networks for industrial ingredient sales.
- Online retail generated USD 5.66 billion in 2025 and USD 6.45 billion in 2026, expanding specialty and lower-volume B2B trial without displacing offline contracts.
- Brevintel analysis treats online channels as access extenders while offline contracts remain the foundation for large-volume ingredient movement.
Regional Outlook
North America and Europe
- North America led at USD 7.88 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 27.49 billion by 2035 at a 13.24% CAGR, supported by Canada’s crop base and expanding U.S. acreage.
- The United States received USD 22.7 million of HS 110610 legume flour imports from Canada in 2024 and benefits from established GRAS precedents for pea-protein ingredients.
- Protein Industries Canada committed C$10.7 million toward a C$24 million project involving Roquette, Prairie Fava, BioNeutra, and Plant Up to improve plant-based ingredient and co-product development.
- Canada combines raw-material scale with processing investment, with Saskatchewan and Alberta accounting for more than 93% of national pea output.
- Europe was valued at USD 6.55 billion in 2025 and is forecast to reach USD 21.96 billion by 2035 at a 12.80% CAGR.
- Germany is a central processing market via Emsland’s Emvision 2030 program, including a modified-starch reaction vessel, a 40,000-tonne starch silo, and logistics infrastructure through 2026–2030.
- France hosts Roquette Frères’ Vic-sur-Aisne complex; Roquette reported approximately EUR 4.5 billion in 2024 turnover.
- The UK’s marrowfat pea tradition supports specialty ingredient development; Mediterranean markets adopt pea flour in pasta reformulation and bakery.
Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa
- Asia Pacific was valued at USD 4.38 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 14.78 billion by 2035 at a 12.86% CAGR.
- India supplied USD 6.9 million, or 5.4 million kg, of HS 110610 legume flour to the United States in 2024, ranking second in U.S. import volumes.
- China’s pea starch base for glass noodles supports expansion into plant-based foods and pulse-derived protein ingredients.
- Japan drives higher-value demand in functional foods, beverages, noodles, and nutrition; Australia adds regional pea production and export capacity.
- Latin America generated USD 2.16 billion in 2025 and is forecast to reach USD 7.18 billion by 2035 at a 12.67% CAGR; Honduras exported USD 0.56 million of HS 110610 to the United States in 2024.
- Middle East and Africa was valued at USD 1.22 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 4.67 billion by 2035 at the highest regional CAGR of 14.26%.
- South Africa exported USD 0.74 million of legume flour to the United States in 2024 and serves as a Sub-Saharan processing and distribution gateway.
- Brevintel analysis anchors regional leadership in North America’s crop–processing–regulatory stack, while MEA’s faster CAGR rewards logistics and technical-support transfer.
Competitive Landscape
Structure and recent developments
- Competition spans vertically integrated processors, specialty millers, regional pulse operators, and consumer-oriented flour brands.
- Roquette Frères led with over 11.2% share in 2025; the top five held 48.8%.
- February 2026: Roquette launched NUTRALYS Pea 850F, linked to a 29% increase in food and beverage launches carrying protein and weight-management claims in 2024–2025.
- March 2026: Beyond Meat entered a pea-protein supply agreement with Roquette covering 2026–2027 at about USD 23.5 million aggregate value.
- March 2026: AGT Foods, Sweet Nutrition, and Protein Industries Canada announced a pulse-ingredient project to improve functionality and expand Regina extrusion and Saskatoon capacity.
- November 2024: Ingredion and Lantmännen formed a partnership; Lantmännen committed more than EUR 100 million toward a Swedish pea-protein plant targeted for 2027 completion.
- May 2024: Protein Industries Canada and Roquette announced a C$24 million processing project including C$10.7 million from Protein Industries Canada at Portage la Prairie.
- November 2025: Bob’s Red Mill introduced three specialty baking flours, including a High Fiber Flour positioned with five times the fiber of conventional all-purpose flour.
- 2024–2026: Emsland continued Emvision 2030 with a modified-starch reaction vessel planned for 2026 commissioning, a 40,000-tonne starch silo, and an automated logistics hall.
- September 2024: Avena Foods presented life-cycle assessment findings identifying whole pea flour among lower-impact pulse ingredients in its portfolio.
Integrated producers
- Roquette Frères
- Ingredion Incorporated
- AGT Food and Ingredients
- Emsland Group
- Grain Millers
Specialty and regional suppliers
- Avena Foods
- Golden Grain Mills
- Barry Farm Foods
- Bob’s Red Mill
- A&B Ingredients
- Midlands Holdings
- Murlidhar Industries