TRIZ Evolution Trends as an Approach for Predicting the Future Development of the Technological Systems in the Food Industry

Innovation is regarded as a vital element for the development of new technologies to create a competitive advantage in the food industry. The innovation process in the food companies is principally driven by two strategies: the technological change (technology push) and the market orientation (market pull). Although both strategies provide the elements to encourage innovation, they can be only applied to solve specific problems or needs that are easily identified limiting their applicability. A new alternative strategy to innovate is to try to anticipate the future developments of technological food systems from an evolutionary perspective based on the TRIZ Evolution Trends (TETs). Thus, to improve the innovation process in the food industry, the present research proposes to combine elements of the TRIZ Evolution Trends, the technology push and the market pull strategies to create an approach to suggest recommendation of the most favorable transformation to improve or develop technological food systems. An example is presented to demonstrate the usefulness of this approach

Application of solid‐state fermentation for the improving of extruded corn dry‐milling by‐products and their protein functional properties

In this study, the effect of solid‐state fermentation (SSF) with Lactobacillus sakei MI401 and Pediococcus acidilactici PA‐2 strains on functional properties of extruded (130 °C; 25 rpm) corn‐milling by‐products (CMB) and their albumin, globulin, and prolamin fractions was evaluated in order to produce stabilized and functionalized food/feed stock. Extrusion resulted in a considerable reduction of microbial contamination of CMB by five log cycles, increased damaged starch, waterabsorption capacity, and lowered protein and fat contents by 12.4% and 37%, respectively. The application of SSF for the extruded CMB have been shown to improve the water absorption, foaming, and emulsifying capacity of albumins and globulins and also increased the digestibility and free radical scavenging activity of prolamins. The essential amino acid content (EAA) in CMB and antioxidant activity of prolamins was lowered after extrusion but significantly increased after SSF. The combination of the abovementioned treatments can be confirmed as a prospective functionalization of CMB, capable of potentially enhancing its safety and improving nutritional, biochemical, and technological properties of proteins

Integration of Ultrasound into the Development of Plant-Based Protein Hydrolysate and Its Bio-Stimulatory Effect for Growth of Wheat Grain Seedlings In Vivo

This study was dedicated to increasing the efficiency of producing plant-based protein hydrolysate using traditional and non-traditional treatments. Low- and high frequency ultrasound (US) at different intensities were applied to corn steep liquor (CSL) at 50 °C for 30 min, and enzymatic hydrolysis was performed using industrially produced alkaline protease. The efficiency of US and enzymatic treatments was characterized by protein solubility (soluble protein (SP) content, hydrolyzed protein (HP) concentration, and free amino acid (FAA) profile) and kinetic parameters: Michaelis–Menten constant (KM) and apparent breakdown rate constant (kA). A significant effect of 37 kHz US pre-treatment for CSL enzymatic hydrolysis was found and resulted in the highest HP concentration (17.5 g/L) using the lowest enzyme concentration (2.1 g/L) and the shortest hydrolysis time (60 min). By using US pre-treatment, on average, a 2.2 times higher FAA content could be achieved compared to traditional hydrolysis. Additionally, results for the kinetic parameters kM and kA confirmed the potential of applying US treatment before hydrolysis. The effect of CSL protein hydrolysate on plant growth was tested in vivo on wheat grain seed germination and resulted in the significant increase in germination parameters compared to the control treatment. These findings indicate that by-products of starch industry could be a promising source for the production of low-cost sustainable biostimulants