From Feed to Fork: Nutritional and Technological Strategies to Enhance Meat Functionality and Sustainability
A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Meat".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 18 June 2026
Special Issue Editor
Interests: meat science and technology; meat quality; physical and sensory properties of foods; food science
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The meat sector is under growing pressure to meet consumer expectations for high-quality, functional products while ensuring environmental, economic, and social sustainability across the value chain. This Special Issue aims to investigate how nutritional and technological innovations—from feed formulation to meat processing—can improve meat functionality, nutritional value, and bioactivity, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable meat production system.
A particular focus will be placed on sustainable feed ingredients, including alternative proteins, agro-industrial co-products, microalgae, and insect meals, and their effects on animal performance, muscle metabolism, and meat quality attributes (texture, flavour, colour, and fatty acid profile).
Furthermore, the Special Issue welcomes contributions addressing post-harvest and processing strategies, such as thermal treatments, structural modification, bioactive compound preservation, and novel technologies that improve both product quality and environmental efficiency.
By integrating research in animal nutrition, meat science, and food technology, this Special Issue encourages multidisciplinary approaches linking feed innovation to meat functionality and consumer health. The overarching aim is to promote sustainable “feed-to-fork” solutions that respond to global challenges in resource efficiency, food security, and circular bioeconomy principles.
Dr. João Almeida
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 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
- meat quality
- sustainable feed ingredients
- alternative proteins
- animal nutrition
- meat functionality
- bioactive compounds
- muscle metabolism
- food sustainability
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