Every food commercial, advertisement, and packaging in the US is currently protein obsessed. I just bought 3 burritos, and the most noticeable thing on the entire package is its protein content. TV commercials about waffles are advertising that they have X amount of protein per serving. The products in my jobsite’s vending machine have protein all over every package.
Did America have a protein thing recently?
Soybeans are a complimentary crop for corn, and is farmed in rotation to fix nitrogen in the soil. The soybean lobby and the corn lobby are essentially the same thing in the US, and they have lots of clout.