Gels in Food Systems: Ingredients for Health, Sustainability and Industrial Innovation

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, gel use in food systems has received attention as a promising strategy to address nutritional, structural, and technological challenges. Gels, classified as water-based, lipid-based, or hybrids, exhibit considerable versatility across various food products, such as processed meats, cheeses, sweets, spreadable creams, and baked goods.

These ingredients’ functionality is particularly relevant to the reformulation of foods to meet the current health-driven demands. Gels have been demonstrated to function as effective fat replacers, thereby facilitating reductions in both the total and saturated fat contents while preserving desirable textures and palatability.

Interest is developing in the digestive behavior and in vitro/in vivo performance of functional food gels, particularly in their ability to modulate nutrient release and improve bioavailability.

Gels play a pivotal role in products designed to meet specific dietary requirements, such as gluten-free formulations, where they mimic the structural and viscoelastic properties of gluten, and plant-based alternatives, where they enhance the structure and sensory quality for vegetarian, vegan, and flexitarian consumers.

In this context, gels also offer opportunities for the valorization of food industry by-products. These materials, which are often rich in polysaccharides, fiber, and proteins, can be upcycled into functional gel-forming ingredients. This contributes to circularity and sustainability in food production.

This Special Issue aims to compile original research on innovative approaches to gel use in food applications, including gels’ roles as structuring agents, texture modifiers, carriers of functional compounds, or tools for product innovation. A particular focus will be placed on studies concentrating on gels’ rheological and stability properties, structure–function relationships, oxidative stability, and sensory aspects. Contributions addressing the practical implications of gel synthesis and incorporation processes, including their feasibility, scalability, and industrial applications, are strongly encouraged.

Dr. Francesca Vurro
Prof. Dr. Antonella Pasqualone
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. Gels is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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 2100 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.

• food innovation
• food development
• plant-based products
• fat replacer
• gluten-free