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Exploring Natural Product Extracts, Food Technology and Functional Foods on the Sustainable Health Perspective

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Food".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2022) | Viewed by 12550

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Thessaly, Terma N. Temponera Str., 43100 Karditsa, Greece
Interests: food lipids; food analysis; pulsed electric field; cloud point extraction; deep eutectic solvents; humic and fulvic acids
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The functions and mechanisms of food components in health promotion and/or disease prevention are becoming increasingly well-understood thanks to modern nutritional science. The modern food industry relies heavily on technology and innovation. The ongoing demand for technological improvement in all industries, particularly the requirement for new products with high nutritional value (e.g., functional foods), requires the constant acquisition of new, high-quality, raw materials. The agricultural and food industries, however, are responsible for a significant proportion of all waste and byproducts produced, due to agricultural practices and the harvesting and processing of raw materials.

Various techniques are used to extract natural compounds from plants or food byproducts, and all of these techniques must achieve two goals: (I) to extract compounds in order to determine their presence in plant matrices; and (II) to obtain compound extracts containing a significant proportion of the substances of interest for each industry. Many industries (e.g., foods, dietary supplements, or cosmetics) are particularly interested in the compounds or mixtures of compounds contained in these products, as they may have beneficial effects on human health. Furthermore, other positive effects include sensory characteristic improvements, increased shelf life, and better technological properties.

As a result, the purpose of this Special Issue of Sustainability is to provide a collection of scientific papers focusing on applications of sustainable natural product extraction, functional foods, and their health potentials.

Dr. Vassilis Athanasiadis
Prof. Dr. Stavros I. Lalas
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • antioxidants
  • bioactive compounds
  • food technology
  • green valorization
  • health potentials
  • high value-added substances
  • industrial by-products
  • polyphenols
  • sustainable agri-food products
  • sustainable extraction techniques

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 1410 KiB  
Article
Optimization of the Extraction Parameters for the Isolation of Bioactive Compounds from Orange Peel Waste
by Vassilis Athanasiadis, Theodoros Chatzimitakos, Konstantina Kotsou, Dimitrios Palaiogiannis, Eleni Bozinou and Stavros I. Lalas
Sustainability 2022, 14(21), 13926; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142113926 - 26 Oct 2022
Cited by 30 | Viewed by 4130
Abstract
More and more research is being focused on the production of value-adding products from waste materials. Food waste is not only a major global issue, but also an excellent source of bioactive compounds. In this study, the parameters that affect the extraction of [...] Read more.
More and more research is being focused on the production of value-adding products from waste materials. Food waste is not only a major global issue, but also an excellent source of bioactive compounds. In this study, the parameters that affect the extraction of the bioactive compounds (polyphenols, ascorbic acid, hesperidin, carotenoids) from orange peels, and their antioxidant properties, were optimized, using a response surface methodology (RSM) (examining the extraction temperature, time, and composition of the extraction solvent). In addition, the effect of two more techniques was examined [ultrasound (US) and pulsed electric field (PEF)], either separately or combined, so as to determine whether they can enhance the extraction of the compounds. From our results, it was apparent that orange peels are an excellent source of many bioactive compounds since the extracts contained hesperidin (16.26 mg/g dw), total polyphenols (34.71 mg GAE/g dw), ascorbic acid (1228.93 mg/100 g dw) and total carotenoids (52.98 μg CtE/g dw). Full article
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15 pages, 3208 KiB  
Article
Extraction of Polyphenolic Antioxidants from Red Grape Pomace and Olive Leaves: Process Optimization Using a Tailor-Made Tertiary Deep Eutectic Solvent
by Vassilis Athanasiadis, Dimitrios Palaiogiannis, Konstantina Poulianiti, Eleni Bozinou, Stavros I. Lalas and Dimitris P. Makris
Sustainability 2022, 14(11), 6864; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14116864 - 4 Jun 2022
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 2383
Abstract
In the framework of introducing green strategies for food processing, the industrial orientation has shifted towards the replacement of conventional petroleum-based solvents with alternative eco-friendly ones. On this basis, the objective of this study was to synthesize a novel, tertiary, food-grade deep eutectic [...] Read more.
In the framework of introducing green strategies for food processing, the industrial orientation has shifted towards the replacement of conventional petroleum-based solvents with alternative eco-friendly ones. On this basis, the objective of this study was to synthesize a novel, tertiary, food-grade deep eutectic solvent, composed of glycerol, citric acid, and L-proline (GL-CA-Pro), and to test it as a solvent for the extraction of polyphenols from agri-food waste biomass. After an initial screening on various common residual materials (apple peels, lemon peels, orange peels, red grape pomace, olive leaves), evidence emerged that indicated GL-CA-Pro was more effective than other DESs commonly used for polyphenol extraction. Furthermore, extracts from red grape pomace (RGP) and olive leaves (OLL) were shown to contain higher level of total polyphenols and increased antioxidant activity. Process optimization for those two materials with the response surface methodology revealed that the major difference pertained to the extraction time. In addition, for both materials, GL-CA-Pro was shown to provide higher total polyphenol yields (53.25 and 42.48 mg gallic acid equivalents per g of dry mass, respectively) compared to water and 60% aqueous ethanol. However, the chromatographic analyses for OLL suggested aqueous ethanol was a more suitable solvent for some principal polyphenolic constituents. The RGP extract produced with GL-CA-Pro exhibited significantly stronger antioxidant effects compared to the aqueous and hydroethanolic extracts, but the outcome for the OLL extracts was diversified. It was concluded that GL-CA-Pro is a very efficient solvent for RGP polyphenols, but its efficiency regarding OLL was comparable to that of aqueous ethanol. Full article
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Review

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29 pages, 794 KiB  
Review
Date Components as Promising Plant-Based Materials to Be Incorporated into Baked Goods—A Review
by Meththa Ranasinghe, Ioannis Manikas, Sajid Maqsood and Constantinos Stathopoulos
Sustainability 2022, 14(2), 605; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14020605 - 6 Jan 2022
Cited by 26 | Viewed by 4858
Abstract
Date (Phoenix dactylifera L. Arecaceae) fruits and their by-products are rich in nutrients. The health benefits of dates and their incorporation into value-added products have been widely studied. The date-processing industry faces a significant sustainability challenge as more than 10% ( [...] Read more.
Date (Phoenix dactylifera L. Arecaceae) fruits and their by-products are rich in nutrients. The health benefits of dates and their incorporation into value-added products have been widely studied. The date-processing industry faces a significant sustainability challenge as more than 10% (w/w) of the production is discarded as waste or by-products. Currently, food scientists are focusing on bakery product fortification with functional food ingredients due to the high demand for nutritious food with more convenience. Utilizing date components in value-added bakery products is a trending research area with increasing attention. Studies where the researchers tried to improve the quality of bakery goods by incorporating date components have shown positive results, with several drawbacks that need attention and further research. The objective of this review is to present a comprehensive overview of the utilization of date components in bakery products and to identify gaps in the current knowledge. This review will help focus further research in the area of valorization of date by-products and thereby contribute to the generation of novel functional bakery products that meet consumer expectations and industry standards, thus generating income for the relevant industry and considerable alleviation of the environmental burden this waste and by-products contribute to. Only a few studies have been focused on utilizing date by-products and their extracts for baked goods, while a research area still remaining under-explored is the effect of incorporation of date components on the shelf life of bakery products. Full article
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