Novel Eco-Friendly Technologies to Improve Food Safety and Quality

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Quality and Safety".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2024) | Viewed by 6379

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Institute of Chemistry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Interests: processing and preservation of meat and meat products; nonthermal technologies; food safety; food quality; development of new added-value products from food processing byproducts
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Center for Food Analysis, Technological Development Support Laboratory (LADETEC), Avenida Horácio Macedo 1281, Polo de Química, Bloco C, Ilha do Fundão, Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro 21941-598, Brazil
Interests: microbial inactivation kinetics; multivariate modeling; multivariate statistics; food authenticity; food fraud; preservation of meat and meat products; nonthermal technologies; food safety; food quality; treatment optimization
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Guest Editor
Department of Food Engineering, Federal University of Espírito Santo, Alegre 29500-000, Brazil
Interests: food safety engineering; non-thermal processing; predictive food microbiology; food contaminants; applied statistics and meta-analysis
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The demand for high-quality sustainable foods with no chemical additives is increasing worldwide. However, reconciling this demand for food with such attributes is challenging for the scientific community and food industries, owing to the high complexity and variability inherent to food products and technologies. This Special Issue comprises applying green technologies to enhance food safety and quality by considering microbiological, physicochemical, sensorial, and toxicological parameters referring to food characterization, authenticity, traceability, preservation, and processing. Innovative studies focusing on eco-friendly and cost-effective technologies for ensuring food quality and origin and maintaining or improving food quality attributes are welcome. Research articles, reviews, communications, and concept papers will be accepted in this section.  

Dr. Maria Lucia Guerra Monteiro
Dr. Yhan Da Silva Mutz
Dr. Denes do Rosario
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • novel green food preservation technologies
  • non-thermal treatments
  • hurdle technologies
  • food processing improvement
  • food authenticity
  • traceability
  • shelf-life
  • pathogen inactivation
  • sensory science
  • treatment optimization

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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11 pages, 861 KiB  
Article
Comparison Among Food By-Products to Improve the Shelf Life of a Fresh Burger Based on Shelled Shrimps
by Olimpia Panza, Amalia Conte and Matteo Alessandro Del Nobile
Foods 2024, 13(21), 3468; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13213468 - 29 Oct 2024
Viewed by 991
Abstract
Pomegranate peels, fig peels, and by-products from turnip greens were used as novel ingredients in burgers based on shelled shrimps. With the aim, a control without any by-products and three fortified samples with 7.5% (w/w) by-product were realized. To [...] Read more.
Pomegranate peels, fig peels, and by-products from turnip greens were used as novel ingredients in burgers based on shelled shrimps. With the aim, a control without any by-products and three fortified samples with 7.5% (w/w) by-product were realized. To verify the benefic effects of by-product addition on the chemical quality of burgers, total phenols, total flavonoids, and antioxidant activity were measured in both the control and fortified samples. In addition, during storage under refrigerated conditions, the microbiological proliferation of the main spoilage bacteria, the pH, and the sensory acceptability were properly monitored in all the samples. Results from chemical analyses confirmed that the nutritional level of shrimp-based burgers enriched with by-products was better than that of the control. Burgers with peels from pomegranate recorded the best results (2.67 ± 0.24 mg GAE/g dw, 1.62 ± 0.21 mg QE/g dw, and 12.63 ± 0.41 mg Trolox/g dw for total phenols, flavonoids, and antioxidant activity, respectively). From the microbiological point of view, the bacterial proliferation was always more rapid in the control than in the other samples. Among the by-products, the pomegranate peels better delayed the spoiling phenomena, even though mesophilic and psychrotrophic bacteria grew abundantly and rapidly in all the products, thus reducing the differences among samples. All the burgers maintained sensory acceptability for more than two weeks, regardless of the by-product addition. Considering both microbiological stability and sensory properties, the shelf life of this product was calculated to be around 1 week for the control burger, 8.5 days for both burgers with fig peels and by-products from turnip greens, and 9 days for the shrimp-based burger fortified with pomegranate peels. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Eco-Friendly Technologies to Improve Food Safety and Quality)
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27 pages, 3122 KiB  
Article
Exploring the Impact of Solid-State Fermentation on Fava Bean Flour: A Comparative Study of Aspergillus oryzae and Rhizopus oligosporus
by Ophélie Gautheron, Laura Nyhan, Maria Garcia Torreiro, Ali Zein Alabiden Tlais, Claudia Cappello, Marco Gobbetti, Andreas Klaus Hammer, Emanuele Zannini, Elke K. Arendt and Aylin W. Sahin
Foods 2024, 13(18), 2922; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13182922 - 15 Sep 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2222
Abstract
Fava bean (Vicia faba L.) is a protein-rich pulse with high nutritional value, but its functional and sensory characteristics limit its application in foods. Solid-state fermentation (SSF) can modify the composition of plant proteins, modulate its functionality, and enhance the sensory aspects. [...] Read more.
Fava bean (Vicia faba L.) is a protein-rich pulse with high nutritional value, but its functional and sensory characteristics limit its application in foods. Solid-state fermentation (SSF) can modify the composition of plant proteins, modulate its functionality, and enhance the sensory aspects. In this study, fava bean flour (FB) was fermented with Aspergillus oryzae and Rhizopus oligosporus to produce FBA and FBR, respectively, ingredients with distinct nutritional, functional, and aroma characteristics. The protein content increased by 20% in FBA and 8% in FBR, while fat levels rose more significantly in FBR (+40%). The overall content of fermentable oligo-, di-, mono-saccharides, and polyols (FODMAPs) decreased by 47% (FBA) and 57% (FBR), although polyol production by A. oryzae was observed. SSF improved the nutritional profile of FBA and FBR, with a notable increase in the concentration of essential amino acids observed, and a reduction in most antinutrients, with the exception of trypsin inhibitors. SSF resulted in the formation of aggregates, which increased the particle size and reduced protein solubility. Emulsions prepared with the fermented ingredients separated faster, and the foaming capacity of both FBA and FBR was decreased, but an increase in water-holding capacity was observed. SSF resulted in the production of predominantly savoury-associated aroma compounds, with compounds characteristic of metallic and mouldy aromas reduced. These results indicate the potential of SSF to transform FB with enhanced nutritional value and improved sensory and functional properties. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Eco-Friendly Technologies to Improve Food Safety and Quality)
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Review

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17 pages, 893 KiB  
Review
Combined UV-C Technologies to Improve Safety and Quality of Fish and Meat Products: A Systematic Review
by Maria Lúcia Guerra Monteiro, Yhan da Silva Mutz, Karen de Abreu Francisco, Denes Kaic Alves do Rosário and Carlos Adam Conte-Junior
Foods 2023, 12(10), 1961; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12101961 - 11 May 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2469
Abstract
This study aimed to identify the best UV-C combined treatments for ensuring the safety and quality of fish and meat products. A total of 4592 articles were screened in the relevant databases, and 16 were eligible studies. For fish, the most effective treatments [...] Read more.
This study aimed to identify the best UV-C combined treatments for ensuring the safety and quality of fish and meat products. A total of 4592 articles were screened in the relevant databases, and 16 were eligible studies. For fish, the most effective treatments to reduce Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria were UV-C at 0.5 J/cm2 + non-thermal atmospheric plasma (NTAP) for 8 min (33.83%) and 1% Verdad N6 + 0.05 J/cm2 + vacuum packaging (25.81%), respectively. An oxygen absorber with 0.102 J/cm2 was the best combined treatment, reducing lipid oxidation (65.59%), protein oxidation (48.95), color (ΔE = 4.51), and hardness changes (18.61%), in addition to a shelf-life extension of at least 2 days. For meat products, Gram-negative bacteria were more reduced by nir-infrared heating (NIR-H; 200.36 µW/cm2/nm) combined with 0.13 J/cm2 (70.82%) and 0.11 J/cm2 (52.09%). While Gram-positive bacteria by 0.13 J/cm2 with NIR-H (200.36 µW/cm2/nm), 1, 2, or 4 J/cm2 with flash pasteurization (FP) during 1.5 or 3 s, and 2 J/cm2 with FP for 0.75 s (58.89–67.77%). LAE (5%) + 0.5 J/cm2 was promising for maintaining color and texture. UV-C combined technologies seem to be a cost-effective alternative to ensure safety with little to no quality changes in fish and meat products. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Eco-Friendly Technologies to Improve Food Safety and Quality)
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