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Feature Review on Food Analytical Methods
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Feature Review on Food Analytical Methods

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Analytical Methods".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 December 2025) | Viewed by 19408

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Antonello Santini

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacy, University of Napoli Federico II, Via D. Montesano 49, 80131 Napoli, Italy
Interests: food chemistry; safety; food safety; food supplements and functional foods; nutraceuticals; sustainability; novel foods; nano-nutraceuticals; recovery from byproducts of the agri-food area; formulation and assessing of novel nutraceuticals; food contaminants; contaminants; risk assessment; mycotoxins and secondary metabolites; chemistry and food education
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

It is my privilege to invite you to contribute a review paper dedicated to this Special Issue of Foods dedicated to “Food Analytical Methods”. This Special Issue will collect only reviews addressing, in particular, the novel and updated aspects of the food area, food analysis, and most updated approaches and methods. This area is attracting interest and impact in the research worldwide due to the newest technical and analytical approaches available and to the possible impact and new valuable information made available to assess food quality, contaminants, novel food analysis, nanotechnology approach to food nutrients, authenticity, recovery, sustainability, and traceability. The relevance of the topic is corroborated by the new methodologies and instrumental approaches, which are continuously being developed and exploited, and also by the validation of the methods of analysis. The expected review manuscripts should include all analytical, technology, and methodology aspects, dedicated specifically to the food broad area. These may include, but not exclusively, the application and development of analytical methods, optimization, validation, and all aspects involved in the field of food analysis, as well as laboratory research impacting on food quality, traceability, safety, sustainability, green approaches, and nanotechnological approaches.

Prof. Dr. Antonello Santini
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • food analysis
  • novel analytical approaches
  • food quality
  • authenticity
  • recovery
  • green analytical approach
  • sustainability
  • method validation
  • traceability
  • nanotechnological approach
  • safety
  • contaminants

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Review

25 pages, 2151 KB  
Review
Spectroscopic Techniques in Bacterial Analysis: Applications of FTIR and Raman—Review
by Elisa Audin, Panagiota Dima, Ioannis S. Chronakis and Ana C. Mendes
Foods 2026, 15(4), 644; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15040644 - 11 Feb 2026
Viewed by 1024
Abstract
The growing recognition of probiotics’ beneficial effects on human health has significantly increased the need to identify, quantify, and characterize these microorganisms. In this context, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopies have become indispensable analytical tools in probiotic research, offering non-invasive, rapid, and [...] Read more.
The growing recognition of probiotics’ beneficial effects on human health has significantly increased the need to identify, quantify, and characterize these microorganisms. In this context, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopies have become indispensable analytical tools in probiotic research, offering non-invasive, rapid, and precise insights into the molecular structure and composition of probiotic strains. Likewise, these spectroscopic methods have also been shown relevant to investigate other bacterial species beyond probiotics. This review explores the principles of FTIR and Raman spectroscopies, emphasizing their role in identifying key biomolecules within bacterial cells, with particular focus on probiotics. Key applications of these vibrational spectroscopies in bacterial research include analyzing cell composition, evaluating encapsulation techniques, and monitoring responses to environmental stress, all of which contribute to enhanced stability and efficacy of probiotic formulations. Furthermore, FTIR and Raman spectroscopies assist in strain identification, investigation of bacteria-water interactions, and quality control, thereby supporting improved formulation and quality assurance. Collectively, these techniques demonstrate significant potential to drive innovation in the probiotics industry through precise strain customization, improved product stability, and robust quality control processes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Review on Food Analytical Methods)
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34 pages, 1795 KB  
Review
Eco-Friendly Sample Preparation Trends for Exogenous Toxic Organic Compounds in Food: A Sustainable Perspective for LC-MS Analysis
by Mariel Cina, Alejandro Mandelli, María Del Valle Ponce, María Guiñez and Soledad Cerutti
Foods 2026, 15(3), 517; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15030517 - 2 Feb 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1179
Abstract
Exogenous toxic compounds in foods, arising from agricultural practices, environmental contamination, industrial processing, and packaging migration, remain a major global concern for food safety. These contaminants include mycotoxins, veterinary drug residues, antibiotics, pesticides, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, heterocyclic aromatic amines, and polycyclic aromatic [...] Read more.
Exogenous toxic compounds in foods, arising from agricultural practices, environmental contamination, industrial processing, and packaging migration, remain a major global concern for food safety. These contaminants include mycotoxins, veterinary drug residues, antibiotics, pesticides, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, heterocyclic aromatic amines, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which have multiple adverse effects on human and animal health. The continued presence of these substances highlights the need for reliable exposure assessment, strengthened regulatory frameworks, and advanced analytical methodologies. Food matrices introduce variability in analytical performance, making sample preparation a critical and often limiting step. Conventional extraction techniques such as solid-phase extraction, liquid–liquid extraction, and Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe (QuEChERS) are still widely applied. Moreover, recent advances have highlighted sustainable alternatives aligned with the principles of green analytical chemistry. In this context, this review provides a comprehensive overview of recent advances (2020–2025) in environmentally friendly extraction techniques for determining exogenous toxic compounds in food samples analyzed by liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC–MS), including their sustainability. Special attention is given to the chemical nature and toxicological relevance of major exogenous organic contaminant families (specialized categories such as hormones and packaging-derived bisphenols were excluded due to distinct migration and metabolic pathways; however, these topics exceed the scope of this manuscript), the analytical challenges associated with different food matrices, and the evolution of extraction and cleanup techniques. Overall, this review integrates analytical robustness, matrix effects, and green metrics to support the development of reliable and more sustainable sample preparation strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Review on Food Analytical Methods)
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Graphical abstract

26 pages, 1183 KB  
Review
From Production to Application: Postbiotics in Meat, Meat Products, Other Food Matrices, and Bioactive Packaging
by Miłosz Trymers, Patryk Wiśniewski, Katarzyna Tkacz and Arkadiusz Zakrzewski
Foods 2026, 15(3), 501; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15030501 - 1 Feb 2026
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1551
Abstract
Postbiotics represent a promising strategy for reconciling increasing consumer demand for clean-label foods with the need to maintain high microbiological safety standards. The present review analyzed the applications of postbiotics in meat products, other food matrices and bioactive packaging, with particular emphasis on [...] Read more.
Postbiotics represent a promising strategy for reconciling increasing consumer demand for clean-label foods with the need to maintain high microbiological safety standards. The present review analyzed the applications of postbiotics in meat products, other food matrices and bioactive packaging, with particular emphasis on their production methods, compositional analysis and antimicrobial properties. Available evidence indicates that postbiotics offer important technological advantages over live probiotics, including enhanced stability during processing and storage and the absence of viable cells, which facilitates their integration into established food quality and safety control systems. The reviewed studies show that postbiotics produced mainly via fermentation with selected lactic acid bacteria and subsequently stabilized, most often by freeze-drying, exhibit pronounced antimicrobial activity in diverse food matrices, particularly meat and dairy products. Their ability to inhibit the growth of major foodborne pathogens, such as Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Salmonella spp., highlights their potential as effective biopreservatives contributing to shelf-life extension and improved microbiological safety. From an industrial perspective, postbiotics can be implemented within the framework of hurdle technology and incorporated into active packaging systems and edible coatings. The wider use of postbiotics in industry remains limited by regulatory uncertainty and methodological diversity. Key challenges include inconsistent taxonomic/strain reporting, divergent methods of inactivation and final processing (which alter bioactive profiles), lack of standardized composition and potency testing, and limited food matrix validation and toxicological data. To eliminate these gaps, regulatory definitions and labelling should be harmonized, and guidelines for production and reporting (strain identity, inactivation parameters, preservation method), and targeted safety and shelf-life testing are recommended. These steps are necessary to translate the documented antibacterial and antioxidant properties of postbiotics into industrial applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Review on Food Analytical Methods)
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Graphical abstract

42 pages, 1954 KB  
Review
Beyond Meat Substitution: A Multifaceted Review of Plant-Based and Alternative Proteins, from Environmental Impact to Analytical Technologies
by Abel Navarré, Leonardo Musto and Tiago Nazareth
Foods 2025, 14(13), 2312; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14132312 - 30 Jun 2025
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 9503
Abstract
The escalating environmental and health concerns regarding conventional meat consumption have intensified the global search for sustainable dietary alternatives. Plant-based foods and meat substitutes have emerged as promising solutions. These products aim to replicate the sensory and nutritional attributes of meat while mitigating [...] Read more.
The escalating environmental and health concerns regarding conventional meat consumption have intensified the global search for sustainable dietary alternatives. Plant-based foods and meat substitutes have emerged as promising solutions. These products aim to replicate the sensory and nutritional attributes of meat while mitigating ecological impacts. This review examined the current scenario of plant-based foods and meat substitutes, focusing on their environmental footprints, health implications, innovative ingredient developments, consumer acceptance, and the use of analytical tools in quality control. Life cycle assessments indicate that plant-based foods and meat substitutes significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, land use, and water consumption compared to animal-based products. These alternatives offer benefits like lower saturated fat. However, they still struggle to match the amino acid composition of meat. Consumer acceptance is influenced by factors including taste, texture, and cultural perceptions, and still requires sensory improvement. Innovations in ingredient sourcing, like the use of legumes, mycoproteins, and fermentation-derived components, are enhancing product quality and diversity. Furthermore, analytical tools such as electronic noses, electronic tongues, spectroscopy, and chemometric methods ensure product consistency and fulfill consumer expectations. By synthesizing interdisciplinary insights, this review offers an integrated perspective to guide future research and development in the field of meat alternatives. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Review on Food Analytical Methods)
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Graphical abstract

40 pages, 769 KB  
Review
Nutritional Value, Ethnopharmacology, Chemistry, and Biological Activities of Species of the Genus Cnidoscolus: An Updated Review
by Joice Barbosa do Nascimento, José Jonas Ferreira Viturino, Maria Alice Macêdo Ribeiro and José Galberto Martins da Costa
Foods 2025, 14(12), 2092; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14122092 - 13 Jun 2025
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3959
Abstract
Species belonging to the genus Cnidoscolus have been widely recognized for their diverse applications, including forage, oil production, latex, ornamental purposes, medicinal uses, and as nutritional sources. This study aimed to compile up-to-date information on the chemical, nutritional, and ethnopharmacological aspects, as well [...] Read more.
Species belonging to the genus Cnidoscolus have been widely recognized for their diverse applications, including forage, oil production, latex, ornamental purposes, medicinal uses, and as nutritional sources. This study aimed to compile up-to-date information on the chemical, nutritional, and ethnopharmacological aspects, as well as the biological activities, of Cnidoscolus species, offering a critical overview of the current advancements in research on these plants. The reviewed literature indicates that Cnidoscolus species hold significant traditional use value, particularly in the treatment of conditions such as cancer, diabetes, and disorders affecting the uterus, prostate, ovaries, and kidneys, in addition to menstrual disturbances, inflammation, and general pain. Scientifically, their efficacy has been demonstrated in several contexts, including antinociceptive, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, cytotoxic, antiproliferative, hypoglycemic, and antioxidant activities, among others. Additionally, certain species like C. aconitifolius have shown potential for human consumption, with leaves being eaten raw or cooked, while C. quercifolius demonstrates nutritional value in its seeds, which can be utilized in the development of functional foods. However, further studies are needed to focus on the isolation and characterization of bioactive compounds found in these species, as well as deeper investigations into the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying their biological activities and assessments of the safety of long-term consumption in both humans and animals. Moreover, more extensive clinical and preclinical studies are essential to validate the proposed therapeutic effects and to support the safe and effective inclusion of these species in conventional treatment regimens. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Review on Food Analytical Methods)
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