Effect of different freeze drying cycle in Semimembranous and Gluteus Medius bovine muscles: changes on microstructure, colour, texture and physicochemical parameters

The aim of the present research was to evaluate effects of freeze drying cycle in Semimembranous and Gluteus Medius bovine muscles (sp: Aberdeen Angus) for instant meal. Samples were analysed by Scanning electron microscopy; texture and colour parameters were analysed by image analysis and physicochemical properties by instrumental assays. Micrographs revealed that a higher porous size structure and shrinkage of muscle fibre diameter were obtained at −40 °C. In Semimembranous and Gluteus Medius bovine muscles, significant difference (P < 0.0001) was obtained for texture, colour and physicochemical parameters. Results revealed that colour, texture and physicochemical parameters were less affected when freeze drying cycle was performed at −40 °C. Freeze drying cycle at −50 and −60 °C showed increases in lightness (L*) and yellowness (b*); decrease in redness (a*) and in water absorbing capability).Instituto de Tecnología de AlimentosFil: Messina, Valeria. Instituto de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas para la Defensa. Departamento de Investigaciones en Sólidos; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina.Fil: Pieniazek, Facundo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina.Fil: Sancho, Ana Maria. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Tecnología de Alimentos, Argentina

Development of foods with porous structure

The modern way of life has turned consumers to the consumption of processedfoods that are easy to be used and require little preparation time. The optimizationand development of new products with desirable characteristics is based on theexamination and understanding of the effect of production methods and processconditions on the quality characteristics of final products. Structure formation duringproduction and processing is playing a predominant role in the qualitycharacteristics of processed foods and also determines many other properties, suchas mechanical properties, appearance, taste, etc., that are crucial for theacceptance of food products by consumers. The objective of this thesis is thedevelopment of foods with determined porous structure and the correlation ofstructure with the quality properties of the products. Drying and extrusion were usedfor the production of foods with defined structure. The materials that were selectedto be studied are Greek products, representative of the three main food categories -fruits, vegetables and cereals. For the production of the extrudates, rice flour wasmixed with dehydrated carrot powder. The effect of freeze drying pressure onproperties of rice, potatoes, mushrooms and strawberries was studied. In addition,the effect of freeze drying, vacuum drying and air drying on quality characteristics ofosmotically pretreated potatoes and bananas was examined. For the extrusionprocess, a twin screw extruder was used, regulating four independent parameters,the extrusion temperature, the screw speed, the feed moisture content and the ratioof the dehydrated carrot powder to the rice flour. Various properties weredetermined in the final products that include structural characteristics, mechanicalproperties, thermal properties, rheological properties and sensory characteristics, aswell as the disintegration kinetics of components in simulated gastric fluid andsaliva. Simple mathematical models were applied or developed for the correlation ofproperties with process conditions, as well as the correlation of properties withstructure. Various process conditions and methods resulted in the development offoods with different structures. Structure significantly influenced the examinedproperties and was a key factor for the determination of the products characteristicsand their acceptance by consumers.Ο σύγχρονος τρόπος ζωής των ανθρώπων έχει καταστήσει απαραίτητη την κατανάλωση τυποποιημένων τροφίμων, τα οποία είναι εύκολα στη χρήση και απαιτούν μικρό χρόνο προετοιμασίας. Η ανάπτυξη και βελτιστοποίηση νέων,επεξεργασμένων προϊόντων με επιθυμητά χαρακτηριστικά βασίζεται στη μελέτη της επίδρασης των μεθόδων και συνθηκών επεξεργασίας στις ιδιότητες των προϊόντων.Μεταξύ των ιδιοτήτων που χαρακτηρίζουν την ποιότητα των επεξεργασμένων προϊόντων, οι δομικές ιδιότητες είναι ιδιαίτερα κρίσιμες. Η διαμόρφωση της δομής των προϊόντων επηρεάζει πλήθος άλλων ιδιοτήτων, όπως είναι οι μηχανικές ιδιότητες, η εμφάνιση, η γεύση, κτλ. Αντικείμενο, επομένως, της συγκεκριμένης διατριβής αποτελεί η ανάπτυξη τροφίμων καθορισμένης πορώδους δομής και η συσχέτιση των δομικών χαρακτηριστικών με τις ιδιότητες ποιότητας των προϊόντων.Αναπτύχθηκαν διαφορετικές δομές με την εφαρμογή των διεργασιών της ξήρανσης και της εκβολής. Τα προϊόντα που ξηράθηκαν περιλαμβάνουν φρούτα, λαχανικά και δημητριακά, ενώ τα προϊόντα εκβολής προέκυψαν από την επεξεργασία μίγματος ρυζάλευρου/αφυδατωμένου καρότου. Μελετήθηκε η επίδραση της πίεσης λειτουργίας κατά τη διάρκεια της ξήρανσης υπό κατάψυξη στα χαρακτηριστικά προϊόντων ρυζιού, πατάτας, μανιταριού και φράουλας, ενώ επίσης, εξετάστηκε η επίδραση τριών μεθόδων ξήρανσης (υπό κατάψυξη, σε ρεύμα αέρα και υπό κενό)στα χαρακτηριστικά προϊόντων πατάτας και μπανάνας, τ α ο ποία είχαν υποστεί ωσμωτική αφυδάτωση. Για τη διεργασία της εκβολής χρησιμοποιήθηκε εκβολέας διπλού κοχλία, ενώ μελετήθηκε η επίδραση τεσσάρων παραμέτρων (θερμοκρασία εκβολής, ρυθμός περιστροφής των κοχλιών, αναλογία των πρώτων υλών και υγρασία της τροφοδοσίας) στα χαρακτηριστικά των τελικών προϊόντων. Στα παραχθέντα προϊόντα μελετήθηκαν, οι δομικές ιδιότητες, οι μηχανικές, οι θερμικές,οι ρεολογικές, η προσρόφηση υγρασίας και τα οργανοληπτικά χαρακτηριστικά.Εξετάστηκε επίσης, η αποικοδόμηση ορισμένων συστατικών σε διαλύματα που προσομοιάζουν το ανθρώπινο γαστρικό υγρό και το σάλιο. Παράλληλα,αναπτύχθηκαν ή εφαρμόστηκαν μαθηματικά πρότυπα βάσει των οποίων μπορεί να πραγματοποιηθεί πρόβλεψη των ιδιοτήτων από τις συνθήκες παραγωγής των προϊόντων, καθώς και συσχέτιση των ιδιοτήτων μεταξύ τους. Οι διάφορες συνθήκες επεξεργασίας οδήγησαν στην παραγωγή προϊόντων με διαφορετικές δομές. Η δομή των προϊόντων επηρέασε σημαντικά τις μελετώμενες ιδιότητες και αποτέλεσε καθοριστικό παράγοντα για τη διαμόρφωση των χαρακτηριστικών των προϊόντων και την αποδοχή τους από τους καταναλωτές

Sustainable Valorisation of Peach and Apricot Waste Using Green Extraction Technique with Conventional and Deep Eutectic Solvents

Worldwide, fruit processing industries reject high volumes of fruit waste, which represent rich sources of phenolic compounds and can be valorised through extraction, and then be reused for food, nutraceutical or cosmetic applications. In the present work, the optimisation of the recovery of phenolic compounds from apricot kernels and pulp, as well as peach pulp, through the green method of ultrasound and microwave assisted extraction (UMAE) is performed. Prior to extraction, a drying step of the pulps is conducted using freeze, vacuum and hot air drying. Except for the conventional extraction solvents of water and ethanol:water, a deep eutectic solvent (DES) formed by choline chloride/urea, and a natural deep eutectic solvent (NaDES) from choline chloride with lactic acid, are used, something that presentsecological benefits. With the aim of discovering the optimum extraction conditions, different values of the parameters of extraction time, utrasonic power and solvent/dry solid ratio are examined, and a mathematical model is developed to correlate them to the extraction yield (EY). The phenolic compounds and the antioxidant activity are determined through UV-Vis spectroscopy and High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). The results of the study demonstrated that the most effective solvent in the extraction of apricot kernels is ethanol: water; DES is more efficient in the extraction of apricot pulp and NaDES in the extraction of peach pulps, reaching EYs of 25.65, 26.83 and 17.13%, respectively. In conclusion, both types of fruit waste are proved to have a significant content of valuable compounds, and the use of DES in fruit by-product extraction is effective and seems to be a promising alternative. Thus, the unexploited amounts of waste can be valorised through simple techniques and innovative solvents

Industrial symbiosis marketplace concept for waste valorization pathways

Acceleration of raw materials’ depletion and waste accumulation create a need for stakeholders to shift from linear to circular business models by adopting novel strategies. Circular economy (CE) and industrial symbiosis (IS) offer a direction towards sustainable, resource efficient systems and eco-friendly waste management approaches. IS encompasses all types of interfirm cooperation in order to achieve a green, waste-free supply chain and at the same time to attain profits. However, among other barriers hampering widespread adoption of IS is lack of information exchange. Digital tools have emerged as facilitators of IS, since they enable real-time data sharing, identification and evaluation of symbiotic opportunities, while continuous progress of those tools is necessary for the digital transformation of IS. Important elements for the functionality and success of such tools are the criteria determining the matching of potential stakeholders and the support of the decision-making process. In the ongoing research that is presented, these matching criteria and benchmarks for waste valorization pathways are investigated and a matchmaking framework is proposed. The objective of the framework is to identify the most suitable collaborators to be deployed later to an automated matchmaking process, revealing latent possibilities (e.g. by suggesting indirect matches) and advantages of symbiotic actions from a holistic perspective. This tailor-made assessment is aspired to evaluate stakeholders’ compatibility based on more than a mere waste streams’ valorization match. Stakeholders’ specific requirements and motivations are incorporated in the potential partnership evaluation, thereby a multicriterion approach is proposed considering the potential cooperators’ relevance in terms of aspects like strategic goals, the level of IS embracement or synergy’s environmental impact

Is Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae Infection in Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplantation Recipients Inevitably Fatal?

Carbapenem resistance, most notably in Klebsiella pneumonia (KPC), results in infections associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Here we report 2 cases of adolescent patients with KPC infection after high-risk bone marrow transplantation, who eventually succumbed from other causes and review the epidemiology and treatment options for KPC infections in this vulnerable population

Towards a Circular Bioeconomy. VOLATILE FATTY ACID PLATFORM FOR BIOWASTE RECYCLING

Resources in general are not infinitely available, and also renewable resources if consumed outside their normal replacement cycles become scarce. Therefore, the establishment of a circular bioeconomy must respect natural systems and replacement cycles of organic carbon thereby reducing environmental pressure of human consumption. Upcycling of side and biowaste streams towards added value compounds represents hereby a critical aspect reducing land system change and fertilizer use for biomass supply for the bioeconomy. The development of a Volatile Fatty Acids Platform (VFAP) represents an important cornerstone for the upcycling of heterogenous municipal biowaste streams.This e-book was prepared in the context of the EU funded project VOLATILE in accordance with the grant agreement No 720777 (European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme)