Advances in Food Texture Analysis and 3D Food Printing
A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Engineering and Technology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2026 | Viewed by 108
Special Issue Editors
Interests: food-based biomaterials; tissue engineering and repair; animal models; cell therapy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: gluten-free baking; plant-based ingredients; food rheology; food processing; by-product valorization
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The texture of food is a critical determinant of consumer acceptance, nutritional delivery, and product functionality, particularly in the development of next-generation foods such as personalized nutrition, elderly-friendly foods, and sustainable protein products. In recent years, 3D food printing has emerged as a promising manufacturing strategy that enables customized geometries, controlled internal structures, and tailored sensory experiences. The printability, structural stability, and final texture of 3D-printed foods are strongly governed by the physicochemical properties and hierarchical organization of their ingredients, especially protein- and polysaccharide-based systems. Proteins and polysaccharides (e.g., starches and dietary fibers) play complementary roles in determining rheological behavior, gelation, and textural attributes through molecular interactions, phase behavior, and network formation. Advances in animal- and plant-protein processing, enzymatic hydrolysis, starch modification, and protein–polysaccharide/lipid complexation have provided new opportunities to engineer texture and functionality.
This Special Issue aims to gather cutting-edge research on food texture analysis and 3D printing, with an emphasis on protein-based building blocks, hydrolysates/peptides, and multi-component complexes designed for advanced processing. We welcome contributions exploring novel processing strategies, rheological and microstructural characterization, and texture–printability correlations in 3D-printed foods. Importantly, studies employing computational chemistry, molecular simulations, and AI-driven approaches to elucidate the structure–activity relationships of proteins and peptides are also encouraged, as they can accelerate the rational design of functional ingredients for emerging food manufacturing technologies. We welcome original research articles, reviews, and other manuscript types (e.g., communications, protocols, etc.), in accordance with the article type guidelines for MDPI journals (https://www.mdpi.com/about/article_types).
Dr. Chengliang Li
Dr. Cristina L. M. Silva
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 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 functional ingredients
- food texture
- rheology
- 3D food printing
- computational modeling
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