Bioactive Compounds from Horticultural Plants and Plant Byproducts: Cultivating Innovation for a Sustainable Future in Food Systems
A special issue of Horticulturae (ISSN 2311-7524). This special issue belongs to the section "Developmental Physiology, Biochemistry, and Molecular Biology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 166
Special Issue Editors
Interests: antioxidants; bioactive compounds; essential oils; plant extracts; food chemistry; food analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: functional food; bioactive compounds; byproduct valorization; waste biorefinery; sustainable food processing; sensory analysis
Interests: functional food development; plant-based ingredients; by-product valorization; bread making technology; bioactive compounds in bakery products
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: functional food development; plant-based ingredients characterization; food industry byproduct valorization; bioactive compounds in sugar industry raw materials and byproducts
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: fruit growing technology; effect of application of various agrotechnical measures (fertilization, pruning, irrigation, soil maintenance, rootstock, etc.) on productivity and fruit quality; influence of biostimulators on primary and secondary metabolites in fruits; antioxidative activity of fruit
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Health-conscious consumers are increasingly prioritizing minimally processed natural foods, with fresh commodities such as fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices recognized as important sources of nutraceuticals with health-promoting properties. Consumers are also choosing functional foods, which often incorporate bioactive compounds from these natural sources. In this sense, horticultural plants rich in secondary bioactive metabolites provide an abundance of natural compounds beneficial for the human diet. The journey from "field to fork" is influenced by various preharvest, postharvest and processing technologies, making phytochemical modulation vital to preserving the quality, quantity and functionality of bioactives in the final product.
This Special Issue welcomes studies focused on the characterization and profiling of bioactive compounds from a variety of horticultural plants, with an emphasis on fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices. It seeks to highlight the latest research advancements in preharvest and postharvest treatments of horticultural crops, particularly their impact on bioactives, and explore methods for optimizing bioactive enhancement. In addition, this Special Issue aims to identify significant nutraceuticals from horticultural plants and waste, which may be applied in various forms (e.g., extracts, ingredients) in functional foods and packaging materials, thereby contributing to the valorization and sustainable cultivation of horticultural plants and addressing waste reduction.
Dr. Charalampos Proestos
Dr. Aleksandra Bajić
Dr. Marijana Djordjević
Dr. Miljana Djordjević
Dr. Jelena Tomić
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. Horticulturae 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 2200 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
- secondary plant metabolites
- bioactive compounds profiling
- functional phytochemicals
- phytochemical modulation
- preharvest factors
- posharvest factors
- fruits and vegetables
- herbs and spices
- horticultural waste valorization
- natural extracts
- functional food
- bioactive packaging
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