Recent Research in Plant-Based Drinks

A special issue of Beverages (ISSN 2306-5710). This special issue belongs to the section "Quality, Nutrition, and Chemistry of Beverages".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 July 2025) | Viewed by 1730

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Food Quality and Technology—IRTA, Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology, 17121 Monells, Spain
Interests: dairy technology; lactose intolerance; milk analogs; vegetal drinks; spray drying; concentration processes; probiotics; functional food

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The surge in popularity of plant-based drinks, ranging from soy, almond, oat, and rice to emerging options like pea, hemp, and quinoa, is driving innovation across the food industry. These beverages transform consumer habits and spark significant scientific interest due to their nutritional potential, functional versatility, and alignment with sustainable practices. Recent research has focused on enhancing the nutritional quality and sensory attributes of these drinks, addressing challenges such as protein stabilization, texture optimization, and fortification with essential micronutrients. Additionally, plant-based beverages are being studied for their potential role in promoting gut health, as vehicles for probiotics and bioactive compounds. Despite their benefits, concerns about antinutritional and potentially toxic components, such as phytates, tannins, and saponins, have gained attention. These compounds can affect nutrient absorption and health, emphasizing the need for improved processing techniques to mitigate their impact. Microbiological safety and stability are equally critical, with studies investigating spoilage microorganisms, fermentation processes, and innovative preservation techniques to ensure product safety and shelf life. Therefore, this Special Issue seeks to highlight innovative studies tackling critical issues in plant-based drink development, including product formulation, microbiological aspects, health impact, safety concerns related to antinutritional factors, and environmental sustainability. By integrating multidisciplinary approaches, we aim to provide a comprehensive overview of the advances and challenges shaping this dynamic field.

Dr. Adriana Dantas
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • protein stabilization
  • product shelf life
  • tngredient optimization
  • novel plant-based ingredients
  • innovative processing technologies
  • enzymatic processing
  • sustainable production methods
  • functional foods
  • antinutritional factors
  • plant-based sports drinks

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

22 pages, 1377 KiB  
Article
Formulation of Black Soybean Yogurt and Evaluation of Changes in the Bioactive Profile and Other Compositional Aspects During Fermentation and Storage
by Thiana Claudia Freire Esteves, Ilana Felberg, Adriana Farah, Adelia Ferreira de Faria-Machado, Eduardo Henrique Miranda Walter, Manuela Cristina Pessanha de Araujo Santiago, Sidney Pacheco, Rosemar Antoniassi, Rosires Deliza, Mercedes Concórdia Carrão-Panizzi and Veronica Calado
Beverages 2025, 11(4), 103; https://doi.org/10.3390/beverages11040103 - 2 Jul 2025
Viewed by 668
Abstract
Black soybean is known for its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that help prevent several degenerative diseases, but in the Western diet, it is poorly used, despite the interest in foods rich in bioactive compounds. This study aimed to formulate a black soybean yogurt [...] Read more.
Black soybean is known for its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that help prevent several degenerative diseases, but in the Western diet, it is poorly used, despite the interest in foods rich in bioactive compounds. This study aimed to formulate a black soybean yogurt (BSY) fermented by a probiotic culture of L. acidophilus and evaluate the nutritional and bioactive profiles, the total antioxidant capacity, and complementary parameters during fermentation and storage for one month. We also evaluated the potential for acceptance by Rio de Janeiro consumers (n = 103). The final BSY water content was 92.8%. The dry matter contained 50.2% protein, 20.1% lipid, 5.9% ashes, 23.8% carbohydrates, and other constituents, including 1% sucrose, 5.9% α-galactosides, 26.9 mg/100 g anthocyanins (mainly cyanidin-3-glucoside), 140.5mg/100 g isoflavones (mainly genistin and daidzin). Titratable acidity was 0.44% and pH 4.5. In the sensory test, 12% sucrose and fruit extracts (strawberry, prune, and grape) were added individually to the product to evaluate the acceptability. The sweetened strawberry extract offered the highest acceptability, with a 7.6 score in a nine-point hedonic scale, against a 5.6 of the sweetened control with no fruit extract. Furthermore, all products scored well in the clusters with assessors who consumed soy products often and daily (total n = 26), with the strawberry-flavored one scoring, on average, 8 or 9. One month storage at 8 ± 2 °C caused a 22% decrease in the anthocyanins content and no significant change in isoflavones, titratable acidity, and pH. Fermentation and the addition of a sweetened fruit extract proved to be promising tools to increase the consumption of black soy milk in the West. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Research in Plant-Based Drinks)
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