Starch and Starch-Based Materials: Food and Non-Food Application

Dear Colleagues,

The growing demand for new functional organic compounds and energy, while reducing fossil fuel resources and environmental problems, prompts the development of materials based on natural polymers. Producers are looking for cheap, widely available, and biodegradable raw materials and environmentally friendly methods for processing them. Hope for the elimination of problems with raw materials is seen in the growing interest in natural polysaccharide-based polymers. One of them is starch, the main energy store in plants and one of the most abundant renewable polysaccharides in the world. For decades, starch and its derivatives have been used associated mainly as an energy component of traditional food and food additives such as emulsifiers and stabilizers. Over the years, their additional properties such as pro-health and functional properties have been identified. Currently, starch-based materials are widely used not only in food production but also in agrochemistry, packaging production, and medicine. Many different methods and techniques of modification of this biopolymer are carried out in order to improve its processing properties and increase its functionality and usability while maintaining biodegradability. Treatments based on green chemistry and sustainable development are becoming more and more popular.

The present Special Issue aims to demonstrate the current state of knowledge on the food and non-food uses of starch and its derivatives. We invite you to submit original and review articles containing the latest reports and research results on this carbohydrate polymer. This will allow u to follow the trends and future development directions of starch-based materials, from structure and functionalization to application.

Dr. Arkadiusz Zarski
Dr. Sergiu Coseri
Prof. Dr. Janusz Kapusniak
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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