Valorization and Utilization of Plant-Based Food Wastes and By-Products: Recent Trends, Technologies and Sustainability Challenges: 2nd Edition

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 5 January 2026 | Viewed by 28

Special Issue Editors


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Instituto Universitario de Ingeniería de Alimentos para el Desarrollo, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Interests: food engineering; food processing; food science and technology; food waste valorization; functional foods development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural Forest and Food Science, Università Degli Studi Di Torino, Via Largo Braccini, 2 Grugliasco, Torino, Italy
Interests: food structure; food processing and technology; food rheology; sustainability and valorization

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Instituto Universitario de Ingeniería de Alimentos para el Desarrollo, Universitat Politècnica de València, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Interests: food engineering; food processing; food science and technology; food waste valorization; functional foods development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Volume I of this Special Issue (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/foods/special_issues/SG8SZAR2T7) was a great success and gained the attention and interest of many scholars. We take the opportunity here to thank them for their contributions and support. As the topic continues to garner the attention of scholars and play a pivotal role, we look forward to the launch of Volume II. I hope it will be as successful as Volume I and of benefit to the field.

Agriculture and the agri-food industry, particularly those focused on minimal processing of plant-based foods, generate substantial amounts of waste and by-products. Due to their composition, these by-products are of great interest for reintroduction into the value chain, thus contributing to the sustainability of the food system. The extraction of components of interest for their antimicrobial, health, or technological properties, along with their integral transformation into powdered ingredients and the application of technologies that enhance the extraction yield or the bioaccessibility and digestibility of the final products, are strategies that have been developed over several years. More recently, plant protein extraction or controlled fermentation have been explored as alternatives to meet the global challenges of climate change and growing food demand.

This Special Issue aims to collect research or review papers related to the valorization and utilization of plant-based food wastes and by-products. Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Nutritional evaluation of by-products and their impact on human health;
  • New plant protein sources;
  • Fermentation;
  • Technologies for extraction or processing.

Prof. Dr. Noelia Betoret
Dr. Virginia Teresa Glicerina
Dr. Ester Betoret
Guest Editors

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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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

  • plant-based by-products
  • vegetable proteins
  • extraction
  • fermentation
  • nutritional value

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

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

Published Papers

This special issue is now open for submission.
Back to TopTop