Drying Technologies in Food Processing

Recently, consumers are paying more attention to healthy diets and often seek products with a high number of bioactive compounds, such as fruit and vegetables [1,2]. Due to the seasonality of raw materials, some fruits and vegetables are available on the market in a fresh state only for a short period during the year. Furthermore, after harvesting, there can be a surplus of raw materials. Drying is one of the most frequently used processing methods that enable surplus to be handled [3,4]. However, the drying process is used in different processes during food production and has an impact on the quality of the final product [3,5]. Different methods of drying and pretreatments are used to obtain high-quality products. Osmotic dehydration could be applied as a pretreatment before the drying process to partially remove water from the cellular tissue via the immersion of fruit and vegetables in hypertonic aqueous solutions, reducing drying time, as well as decreasing process costs and improving the taste of the final product [1,6,7]. However, osmotic dehydration might also be used to obtain minimally processed fruit and vegetable products [8]. To accelerate mass transfer during osmotic dehydration and drying, in recent years, new techniques, such as pulsed-vacuum, high and low pressure, power ultrasound, pulsed electric fields, etc., have been used [9–11]. In this Special Issue, “Drying Technologies in Food Processing”, a comprehensive overview of the application of emerging and unconventional technologies prior to and during osmotic dehydration is presented. These innovative approaches are employed to produce high-quality osmodehydrated and dried products. Additionally, this Special Issue offers valuable insights into the principles and fundamentals of nonthermal technologies and their applications in food processing. This will allow researchers and experts to gain valuable insights into the potential use of different technologies in food processing, enhancing the efficiency of osmotic dehydration and drying methods

Sustainable Approach for Development Dried Snack Based on Actinidia deliciosa Kiwifruit

Featured Application The drying process enables the obtainment of snacks that can be stored at room temperature. Freeze drying better preserves bioactive compounds compared to hot air drying; however, its high porosity requires a specific storage method-without access to the air. The freeze-dried samples were more appreciated by consumers than the air-dried ones, as well as those containing a small amount of additional sweetener. The valorization of waste products can help to improve the health and well-being of consumers through the development of new products enriched with valuable bioactive compounds. Thus, guaranteeing improved environmental sustainability as well as attractive food products. The aim of this study was to evaluate the method of producing shelf-stable snacks based on kiwifruit with the objective of obtaining an appealing snack with good taste, color, and nutritional value. Less valuable kiwifruits for size and shape were utilized in order to reduce kiwifruit production waste. To obtain the snacks, two drying methods were used: freeze-drying and hot air drying. Physical and chemical analyses were conducted. Furthermore, a sensory evaluation was undertaken. The results showed that both hot-air and freeze-drying methods are suitable for obtaining a good quality snack, which was attractive to consumers. However, the freeze-dried snack was better assessed than hot-air dried. Moreover, consumers preferred snacks with additional sucrose or trehalose to those without it. It was observed that products produced using the freeze-drying process had lower water content, and lower water activity, were brighter, had a more saturated color, and had similar or higher antioxidant activity, especially for samples made from kiwi, fennel, and spinach. The drying process allows for obtaining a snack that can be stored at room temperature. Freeze drying better preserved bioactive compounds compared to air drying. The freeze-dried samples were more appreciated by consumers than the air-dried and those containing sweetener

Safety, quality, and processing of fruits and vegetables

Nowadays, one of the main objectives of the fruit and vegetable industry is to develop innovative novel products with high quality, safety, and optimal nutritional characteristics in order to respond with efficiency to the increasing consumer expectations. Various emerging, unconventional technologies (e.g., pulsed electric field, pulsed light, ultrasound, high pressure, and microwave drying) enable the processing of fruits and vegetables, increasing their stability while preserving their thermolabile nutrients, flavour, texture, and overall quality. Some of these technologies can also be used for waste and by-product valorisation. The application of fast noninvasive methods for process control is of great importance for the fruit and vegetable industry. The following Special Issue \u201cSafety, Quality, and Processing of Fruits and Vegetables\u201d consists of 11 papers, which provide a high-value contribution to the existing knowledge on safety aspects, quality evaluation, and emerging processing technologies for fruits and vegetables

Effect of the Pulsed Electric Field Treatment on Physical, Chemical and Structural Changes of Vacuum Impregnated Apple Tissue in Aloe Vera Juices

Vacuum impregnation (VI) stands as a diffusion-driven food processing method that has found recent application within the food industry, particularly for the cold formulation of fortified food products. Pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment can affect the food structure, influencing therefore the mass transfer phenomena during the further processing. Thus, the study aimed at investigating the effect of PEF treatment on selected physicochemical properties of vacuum-impregnated apples. Apple slices were vacuum impregnated with aloe vera juice solution with or PEF treatment at different intensities (125, 212.5 or 300 V/cm). The PEF was applied as a pretreatment—applied before the VI process as well as posttreatment—applied after the VI process. The VI process with aloe vera juice resulted in a sample weight increase of over 24% as well as structural changes, partial cell viability loss and color alteration. In addition, the decrease of bioactive compounds was observed, while antioxidant activity remained at a similar level as in raw material. PEF treatment adversely affected vacuum impregnation efficiency, causing microstructural changes and cell viability loss. Additionally, chemical composition modifications were evident through thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Fourier Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analyses. Tissue hardness decreased significantly due to structural damage and caused high leakage from plant tissue, which resulted in hindering saturation with aloe vera juice during the VI process. Additionally, reduced bioactive substance content after PEF treatment was observed and the VI process did not restore apple samples of the bioactive compounds from aloe vera juice

Syllabus proposal for a self-paced, modular e-learning platform aiming to empower young European agrifood entrepreneurs

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Syllabus proposal for a self-paced, modular e-learning platform aiming to empower young European agrifood entrepreneurs

Most Food Science and Technology curricula are very technical driven, preparing the students to meet the industry demands or embrace a researching career. Although this model accomplishes its purpose when the students follow that path, it also understimulates their entrepreneurial creativity, potentially adding to the overall inertia of starting new businesses. On the other hand, nearly all the available didactic materials that cover entrepreneurship are very generic in their approach and lack the scientific know-how required to tackle the particular challenges of the agrifood industry. To make these ends meet, the YOUAREIN (YOUng AgRifood European INnovators) project was developed, aiming to provide a framework of e-learning events that will culminate in a self-paced, open access, modular course platform focused on the journey from the ideation to the full development and production of an agrifood product. A syllabus proposal for this project was drawn in modules, each corresponding to specific learning objectives, to allow the participants to match the received content to their specific needs. Additionally, to provide a framework that would unify all learning objectives, an example of an innovative food product was included, following every step of the process and serving as an overarching theme of the whole platform. Throughout the entire course syllabus, technical concepts of novel food engineering, designed to assist in the development of a prototype and the later transition to a scaled-up production, were intertwined with practical tools for the creation of innovative and sustainable business models, resulting in a multidisciplinary approach to agrifood entrepreneurship where each decision is influenced by the holistic perspective of the process.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The impact of pulsed electric field on the extraction of bioactive compounds from beetroot

Beetroot is a root vegetable rich in different bioactive components, such as vitamins, minerals, phenolics, carotenoids, nitrate, ascorbic acids, and betalains, that can have a positive effect on human health. The aim of this work was to study the influence of the pulsed electric field (PEF) at different electric field strengths (4.38 and 6.25 kV/cm), pulse number 10\u201330, and energy input 0\u201312.5 kJ/kg as a pretreatment method on the extraction of betalains from beetroot. The obtained results showed that the application of PEF pre-treatment significantly (p < 0.05) influenced the efficiency of extraction of bioactive compounds from beetroot. The highest increase in the content of betalain compounds in the red beet\u2019s extract (betanin by 329%, vulgaxanthin by 244%, compared to the control sample), was noted for 20 pulses of electric field at 4.38 kV/cm of strength. Treatment of the plant material with a PEF also resulted in an increase in the electrical conductivity compared to the non-treated sample due to the increase in cell membrane permeability, which was associated with leakage of substances able to conduct electricity, including mineral salts, into the intercellular space

Transcaval versus Supra-Aortic Vascular Accesses for Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis.

A growing body of evidence suggests that extrathoracic vascular accesses for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) yield favorable outcomes and can be considered as primary alternatives when the gold-standard transfemoral access is contraindicated. Data comparing the transcaval (TCv) to supra-aortic (SAo) approaches (transcarotid, transsubclavian, and transaxillary) for TAVR are lacking. We aimed to compare the outcomes and safety of TCv and SAo accesses for TAVR as alternatives to transfemoral TAVR. A systematic review with meta-analysis was performed by searching PubMed/MEDLINE and EMBASE databases for all articles comparing TCv-TAVR against SAo-TAVR published until September 2023. Outcomes included in-hospital or 30-day all-cause mortality (ACM) and postoperative complications. A total of three studies with 318 TCv-TAVR and 179 SAo-TAVR patients were included. No statistically significant difference was found regarding in-hospital or 30-day ACM (relative risk [RR] 1.04, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.47-2.34, p = 0.91), major bleeding, the need for blood transfusions, major vascular complications, and acute kidney injury. TCv-TAVR was associated with a non-statistically significant lower rate of neurovascular complications (RR 0.39, 95%CI 0.14-1.09, p = 0.07). These results suggest that both approaches may be considered as first-line alternatives to transfemoral TAVR, depending on local expertise and patients' anatomy. Additional data from long-term cohort studies are needed