Search Results (407)

Background/Objectives: The transition toward healthier and more sustainable diets has increased the need for reformulated bakery and confectionery products formulated with alternative ingredients. However, validated instruments for assessing consumer acceptance of these products remain limited. This study aimed to develop and psychometrically validate a multidimensional assessment framework integrating food choice motives, green (environmental) values, health consciousness, perceived nutritional value, willingness to pay a premium, and purchase intention. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 504 consumers in Romania using an online questionnaire. The instrument was developed by adapting established scales and by developing a new Perceived Nutritional Value scale. Dimensionality was evaluated using exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory (CFA) factor analyses. Temporal stability was assessed in an independent test–retest subsample (n = 30; 14-day interval), and the proposed conceptual model was evaluated using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with 5000 bootstrap resamples. Robustness was examined through a sensitivity analysis excluding respondents younger than 18 years (N = 441). Results: EFA (KMO = 0.933) and CFA (CFI = 0.965, TLI = 0.959, RMSEA = 0.061, SRMR = 0.033) supported the proposed six-factor structure. All constructs demonstrated excellent internal consistency (Cronbach’s α: 0.898–0.938), convergent validity (AVE: 0.790–0.889), discriminant validity (HTMT < 0.77), and good-to-excellent test–retest reliability (ICC: 0.82–0.91). Perceived nutritional value was positively and significantly associated with both willingness to pay and purchase intention, and willingness to pay partially mediated the association between perceived nutritional value and purchase intention. The structural model explained 46.1% of the variance in purchase intention; all hypothesized relationships were supported, and the findings remained stable in the sensitivity analysis. Conclusions: The proposed framework demonstrated good psychometric performance and provides a theory-informed measurement framework for assessing consumer acceptance of reformulated bakery and confectionery products. It may support future nutrition research, consumer studies, and the evaluation of food reformulation strategies aimed at promoting healthier and more sustainable dietary choices. Full article

Diffusion against a concentration gradient, also called uphill transport, has been reported for magnesium and sulfate ions in solutions of NaCl and Mg${\mathrm{SO}}_4$ in reverse electrodialysis (RED). Here we derive transport equations for such systems and explain the observed uphill transport using non-equilibrium thermodynamics (NET). A set of Nernst–Planck equations was reformulated into a set of flux equations with neutral salt driving forces. By applying the condition of entropy production invariance to the sets of variables, we show how an ideal ion selectivity model provides Onsager coupling coefficients for the ion transport. These coupling coefficients can predict and explain the observed uphill transport of magnesium and sulfate. A linear fitting scheme is developed to fit the transport coefficients to experimental data for the ideal ion selectivity model and for a more general model. The results show that even the simplest ideal ion selectivity model captures the uphill transport, and the phenomenon occurs due to diffusional ion exchange, as in Donnan dialysis. Under open-circuit conditions, deviations are large, and the simplest model is no longer sufficient; co-ion leakage corrections are essential. The results provide a basis for future modelling of RED processes; in particular, one can determine and optimise the process efficiency, as the model gives direct access to the process’s local entropy production. Osmosis is identified as a potential source of error. Full article

Sodium chloride is essential in meat products because it contributes simultaneously to technological functionality, microbiological stability, and sensory quality. This multifunctionality explains why sodium reduction remains a major technological challenge. Excessive sodium intake remains a major public health concern, and processed meat products are among its principal dietary contributors. Lower sodium intake is consistently associated with lower systolic blood pressure, with larger effects in people with hypertension. This integrative review synthesizes evidence from 125 studies identified through a Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA)—guided literature search, covering 4 interrelated aspects of reformulation: technological functionality and the associated quality losses, microbiological risk and validated mitigation strategies, the population cardiovascular benefit, and sensory acceptability together with consumer behavior. The evidence indicates that sodium reductions of 25–50% are achievable when complementary technological, sensory, and microbiological strategies are combined and adapted to the specific meat matrix. A single solution generalized across the entire portfolio of meat products is not supported by the evidence. Full article

With the ever-growing population and increasing demand for food, cultivated meat (CM) represents a potentially sustainable alternative source of protein. However, one of the critical challenges is ensuring that the nutritional value of CM is comparable to that of conventional meat. In light of this, this scoping review aimed to systematically map the existing evidence from in vitro studies and identify potential nutritional fortification methods for CM. Literature searches were conducted in PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science from inception to December 2025, supplemented by a hand search in January 2026. Studies were included if they were in vitro studies related to cultivated food that applied a fortification strategy or treatment to improve the nutritional value or food functionality and reported the relevant outcomes. Extracted data (e.g., fortification methods, cell lines, study results) were synthesized descriptively. Seven studies were eligible for inclusion. Three fortification strategies were identified, including metabolic engineering, product reformulation, and nutrient-enriched cell culture medium. Reported outcomes varied among the included studies and included changes in nutritional value, food functionality, and cellular functionality of CM. However, most studies used cell models that are primarily intended for research purposes rather than food production or human consumption, which may limit their relevance to commercial CM products. In conclusion, this review identified preliminary fortification approaches that may modify the nutritional value, food functionality, or cellular functionality of CM. However, further investigation is needed to determine their effects on the nutritional composition of the resulting cell biomass or final CM product. Full article

Influenza remains a persistent global health threat, accounting for an estimated one billion infections and 350,000–600,000 deaths worldwide annually. Beyond substantial mortality and morbidity, influenza imposes major socio-economic costs through healthcare utilisation and productivity losses, amounting to tens of billions of dollars each year. Current seasonal vaccination strategies are constrained by rapid antigenic evolution, which necessitates frequent vaccine reformulation and contributes to suboptimal vaccine efficacy across seasons. These drawbacks highlight the need for a universal influenza vaccine (UIV) that protects against all seasonal and potential pandemic influenza strains via a single dose. This review evaluates the feasibility of a UIV as an alternative to a seasonal influenza vaccine (SIV) by consolidating evidence from current UIV candidates in preclinical and clinical development across a diverse range of platforms and target epitopes. Preclinical studies and clinical trials have demonstrated the safety and tolerability of multiple candidates, as well as their ability to elicit broadly cross-reactive immune responses. However, several challenges remain regarding the long-term efficacy of these vaccines. In particular, pre-existing host immunity can shape subsequent vaccine responses, with immune imprinting introducing biases toward previously encountered influenza strains, potentially reducing vaccine effectiveness. In addition, the genetic plasticity of influenza viruses, driven by ongoing mutations and genetic reassortment, raises concerns about the ability of a single vaccine formulation to maintain broad and durable protection. Overall, several UIV candidates have shown promising early results. Although ecological and immunological barriers remain, a UIV could become a viable alternative to, or eventual replacement, for SIVs. Full article

Oleogels, in which liquid oils are structured into semi-solid matrices by oleogelators, have been widely investigated as animal fat replacers in meat products, where they lower saturated fatty acid content while helping preserve texture, structure, and emulsion stability. The reported gains are substantial: structuring PUFA-rich oils to replace pork backfat has raised the PUFA/SFA ratio around 3.6-fold and cut the n-6/n-3 ratio up to 23-fold in burgers, while cellulose- and wax-structured systems have reduced saturated fat from roughly 42% to 15% of total fat in patties. In parallel, oleogels and structurally related gels act as carriers for lipophilic bioactives such as carotenoids, curcumin, phytosterols, and omega-3 fatty acids, improving oxidative stability and modulating digestive release, with encapsulation efficiencies exceeding 90% in some systems. Whether one structured-lipid system can perform both roles inside a meat matrix remains largely untested: direct evidence for classical oleogels is confined to a few cases, most clearly curcumin-loaded beeswax oleogels in pork burgers, which retained antioxidant protection through chilled storage and cooking. This review integrates the fat-replacement and bioactive-delivery studies, separates classical oleogels from gelled emulsions, Pickering emulsions, and bigels, and stratifies studies by level of evidence. Because most current support comes from related systems, it is framed as a perspective that maps this evidence gradient and defines the experiments required to validate dual-function oleogels under realistic meat processing and storage conditions. Full article

For decades, industrial trans fatty acids (iTFAs) have remained a critical focus of the scientific community, the food industry, and regulatory authorities because of their well-established role in the development of cardiovascular diseases, metabolic disorders, and chronic systemic inflammation. Rather than providing a descriptive overview, this review critically synthesizes current evidence on the elimination of industrial TFAs by integrating health, technological, regulatory, and sustainability perspectives into a comprehensive interdisciplinary analysis. The review outlines the biochemical characteristics and dietary sources of trans fatty acid isomers, highlighting the continuing scientific debate regarding the differential health effects of industrially produced and naturally occurring ruminant-derived TFAs. It also examines the evolution of scientific evidence that led to major regulatory actions by international organizations, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Commission, resulting in legally binding restrictions that have substantially reduced industrial TFA intake and improved public health. Particular emphasis is placed on the critical assessment of current fat reformulation strategies, considering not only their technological functionality but also their nutritional quality, long-term metabolic implications, and contribution to sustainable food systems. Full hydrogenation, fractionation, chemical and enzymatic interesterification, and oleogelation are comparatively evaluated with respect to their advantages, limitations, and potential technological, nutritional, and environmental trade-offs. In addition, lipid microencapsulation is discussed as an emerging strategy for protecting oxidation-sensitive polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), thereby facilitating their incorporation into functional foods while maintaining nutritional quality. Unlike previous reviews that primarily focus on health outcomes or individual processing technologies, this review systematically integrates the sustainability dimensions of alternative fat modification approaches, including resource efficiency, energy consumption, clean label product development, and circular economy principles. Furthermore, it identifies current knowledge gaps related to the long-term metabolic safety, industrial scalability, and environmental performance of emerging lipid technologies. By combining these complementary perspectives, the review provides a comprehensive interdisciplinary synthesis that supports evidence-based fat reformulation and offers practical guidance for researchers, food manufacturers, and policy makers seeking to develop safer, nutritionally improved, technologically functional, and environmentally sustainable lipid systems. Full article

Long-context modeling is important for long-horizon generation tasks, yet larger context windows do not necessarily ensure stable organizational continuity. We propose Dimension-Constrained Organizational Relay (DCOR), a workflow-level framework that reformulates long-horizon generation as the ordered propagation of finite organizational states rather than repeated replay of complete token histories. DCOR introduces Order and Dimension to represent sequential organizational evolution and task-oriented constraints, and comprises Organizational Set Extraction, Dimension-Constrained Generation, Organizational Relay, and Organizational Convergence. We evaluate DCOR on cumulative multi-instance advertisement generation and long-form article generation. Across ten advertisement runs, DCOR generated 259–315 structured creative blocks per run, averaging 279.3 ± 17.9, while maintaining the required format and producing no exact duplicate blocks. At the matched 30-block scale, its main advantage was cumulative structured production rather than the lowest character-level repetition. In long-form generation, DCOR achieved the lowest mean character-level 4-gram and 6-gram repetition compared with Direct Generation, Rolling-Summary Generation, Hierarchical-Outline Generation, and Neural RAG-Memory, while maintaining high Distinct-2 and Distinct-3 values. Ablation results further showed that removing Dimension, Organizational Relay, or Order increased repetition and reduced sustained multi-section expansion. These findings support organizational-state propagation as a complementary mechanism for structured long-horizon generation under restricted local-context conditions. Full article

This paper applies established saddlepoint approximation techniques to nonlinear statistics arising from inverse Gaussian models. In particular, we consider the product of independent inverse Gaussian random variables and the ratio of weighted linear combinations of inverse Gaussian random variables, for which exact distributions are generally unavailable in closed form. For the product statistic, a logarithmic transformation converts the problem into one involving the cumulant generating function of a sum of log-transformed variables. This cumulant generating function is expressed in terms of fractional moments including modified Bessel functions of the second kind. For the ratio statistic, the event including the ratio is reformulated in terms of a linear statistic, which enables the use of saddlepoint density and Lugannani-Rice distribution approximations. The proposed formulation accommodates heterogeneous model parameters, overlapping numerator and denominator components, and flexible coefficient structures subject to positivity of the denominator. Simulation studies show that the proposed approximations provide accurate results across a range of sample sizes, skewness regimes, and parameter configurations. Furthermore, simulation results indicate that the saddlepoint approximation is more accurate than the normal approximation. Sensitivity analysis confirms that the proposed approximations are reasonably stable under moderate inverse Gaussian parameter misspecification. Three real data applications including clinical illness scores, engineering repair times, and environmental runoff measurements illustrate the practical usefulness of the approach. Overall, the results indicate that the saddlepoint approximation provides an accurate and computationally efficient tool for inference on nonlinear statistics from inverse Gaussian models when exact distributions are not available. Full article

Can Hans Jonas’s heuristics of fear still ground a philosophy of artificial intelligence (AI), or does the digital artefact require its reformulation? Building on the empirical turn in the philosophy of technology and on a postphenomenological reading of human–technology relations, this article combines conceptual reconstruction with a PRISMA 2020-compliant bibliometric review (Scopus + Web of Science, 2010–2026; n = 2372 articles and reviews). The bibliometric map reveals an extreme productivity concentration, a stable journal core, and six thematic clusters that organise the field. Rather than treating these patterns as proof of a normative thesis, the article uses them to locate a lexical re-weighting of the field after 2021, in which applied AI-ethics and governance vocabularies expand faster than explicitly philosophical vocabularies. A targeted Jonasian sub-corpus (n = 124) indicates that Jonas remains conceptually relevant but circulates mainly in a smaller, database-visible niche of continental and environmental ethics. We argue that the heuristics of fear remains philosophically fertile provided that it is reconstructed as a threshold question of moral admissibility and expanded through phenomenological resources—lifeworld, embodiment, technological mediation—and through the cosmotechnical plurality emphasised by Yuk Hui. The convergence of bibliometric mapping and philosophical analysis suggests that robust AI governance requires not only procedural principles but also renewed attention to digital mediation, distributed agency, and the protection of the lifeworld under algorithmic uncertainty. Full article

Front-of-pack nutrition labeling systems have become important tools for improving consumer understanding of nutritional information and supporting healthier food choices. Among these systems, Nutri-Score has emerged as one of the most widely implemented nutrient profiling models in Europe. Based on the Food Standards Agency Nutrient Profiling System, Nutri-Score summarizes selected nutritional characteristics of foods through a simplified five-level color-coded scale. A growing body of evidence indicates that Nutri-Score improves consumers’ ability to compare products, supports healthier purchasing decisions, and may encourage product reformulation. Epidemiological studies have reported associations between dietary patterns characterized by less favorable nutrient profile scores and increased risks of chronic diseases and mortality. Despite these strengths, important scientific and conceptual questions remain. This review examines the principles of nutrient profiling and assesses how effectively food quality can be represented by a limited set of nutritional criteria. Particular attention is given to nutrient reductionism, the use of the standardized 100 g reference, food matrix effects, the relationship between nutrient profiling and food processing, the influence of hedonic drivers and health claims on consumer behavior, and the growing importance of environmental contaminants as dimensions of food quality not captured by current algorithms. Future food evaluation systems may benefit from integrating complementary information related to food structure, processing characteristics, dietary context, and emerging insights from systems nutrition. Full article

Broccoli by-products represent an underutilized source of dietary fiber and bioactive compounds with potential as functional food ingredients. This study evaluated the effect of enzymatic treatment with Viscozyme^® L on broccoli by-products and their incorporation into gluten-free (GF) sourdough breads. Three GF bread formulations were developed: a control bread (BCT), a bread enriched with untreated broccoli by-products (BBC), and a bread enriched with enzymatically treated broccoli by-products (BBE), using a commercial GF bread (COM) as reference. Nutritional composition, antioxidant activity, starch digestibility, and sensory characteristics were evaluated. The incorporation of broccoli by-products significantly improved protein, total dietary fiber, and antioxidant activity compared with COM, with all reformulated breads meeting the EU “high fiber” claim. Enzymatic treatment with Viscozyme^® L further enhanced these properties, with BBE reaching 2.66 g 100 g⁻¹ soluble dietary fiber and 13.51 µM TE g⁻¹ in FRAP, while exhibiting the highest slowly digestible starch content (20.39 g 100 g⁻¹), suggesting a potentially more favorable starch digestibility profile. Sensory evaluation confirmed that these nutritional improvements were achieved without significantly compromising consumer acceptability. Overall, Viscozyme^® L-treated broccoli by-products represent a sustainable, clean-label ingredient for nutritionally enhanced GF bakery products, supporting agri-food by-product valorization within a circular economy framework. Full article

Single-machine, single-product inventory models with generalized interarrival times have lacked a fully rigorous and computationally efficient optimization framework because a sign error in earlier derivations produced ad hoc feasibility restrictions and overly broad search domains. This study presents a corrected derivation that proves the strict convexity of the minimum-cost objective and establishes the existence and uniqueness of an interior optimum without auxiliary conditions, therefore consolidating previously fragmented results into a single theorem. Building on these structural properties, the maximum-profit formulation is reduced to a one-dimensional program with natural finite bounds that tightly bracket the optimizer, replacing earlier paired bounds defined on an effectively unbounded domain. Numerical results for a canonical benchmark show that the tightened admissible interval recovers the same optimum with fewer function evaluations, thereby improving computational efficiency and implementation robustness. The paper therefore contributes a corrected optimality theory, a problem-native one-dimensional reformulation of the profit model, and a more reproducible computational procedure for capacity-constrained single-machine systems under generalized interarrival times. Full article

Sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies represent a critical threat to the operational safety and productivity of marine ranching systems. Taking a typical marine ranching area in the Northern Yellow Sea as the study area, this study developed a lightweight two-stage field-to-site forecasting framework. In the first stage, a Convolutional Long Short-Term Memory network (ConvLSTM) was employed to generate 1–5 days regional SST forecasts. Through experiments involving 24 input configurations, the combination of Optimum Interpolation Sea Surface Temperature (OISST), seasonal and trend components, and ERA5 meteorological variables was identified as an optimal configuration, providing spatial-evolution constraints for the target location. In the second stage, the 5-day target-site forecasts were concatenated with OISST to construct a 60-day sequence, which was then used to drive a lightweight Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU) for extended forecasts from days 6 to 15. This strategy reformulates the forecasting task into a spatially constrained 10-day extension forecast, thereby suppressing long-lead error accumulation. The results showed that, in the regional forecasting stage, an RMSE of 0.83 °C and MAE of 0.63 °C were achieved on Day 5, while in the extended-forecasting stage, an RMSE of 0.89 °C and MAE of 0.69 °C were achieved on Day 15. Compared with single-stage ConvLSTM and GRU models performing direct 15-day forecasting, the field-to-site strategy reduced RMSE by approximately 25.21% and 9.18%, respectively, and reduced MAE by approximately 24.18% and 8.00%, respectively. Independent validation against in situ buoy observations further showed that the proposed framework introduced only limited additional errors comparable to the inherent discrepancy between OISST and buoy observations. Additional tests under representative marine heatwave (MHW) conditions showed that the framework retained useful forecasting skill under anomalous warming conditions. Furthermore, its extended application experiments at five additional marine ranching sites in the Northern Yellow Sea produced consistent forecasting performance, with mean RMSE and MAE ranging from 0.71 °C to 0.75 °C and from 0.53 °C to 0.56 °C, respectively. The proposed method can therefore provide a risk-warning window of at least two weeks for marine ranching management and support timely operational decisions for temperature-related risk mitigation and refined aquaculture management. Full article

In animal production, gases such as ammonia and greenhouse gases (GHGs) originate from wastes in three main compartments: the animal house of an experimental facility in Northern Italy, storage sites and the slurry-spreading process on cultivated soils. Dietary composition can influence slurry characteristics and gaseous emissions from pig production systems. This exploratory study investigated relationships among slurry composition, volatile fatty acids (VFAs), and gaseous emissions in weaned pigs fed either a conventional diet or a reformulated diet. Faecal samples produced by piglets fed two different diets were collected at three time points: 14, 28 and 42 d of age. Piglets were housed in 32 pens (2 animals per pen, with 16 pens per treatment) on a slatted floor and assigned to either a control diet (C) or a reformulated diet (T) including single-cell protein (SCP). The piglets were administered a starter phase (0–14 days) and a grower phase (14–42 days). Slurry samples were analysed for physicochemical parameters, VFAs, NH₃, N₂O, and CO₂ emissions. The reformulated diet was associated with higher total Kjeldahl nitrogen and volatile solids, together with changes in VFA profiles characterised by lower acetic and propionic acids and relatively higher lactic and n-butyric acids. NH₃ and CO₂ emissions tended to be lower in the reformulated treatment, whereas N₂O showed variable responses across sampling times. These findings indicate that dietary reformulation with SCP inclusion may influence manure characteristics and fermentation processes, with potential consequences for ammonia emission mitigation. Given the exploratory nature of the study and the non-iso-nutritional formulation of the diets, the results should be interpreted as treatment-level associations rather than evidence of direct causal effects. Further studies under controlled nutritional conditions are required to clarify the mechanisms linking dietary composition, manure properties, and environmental emissions in pig production. Full article