Encapsulation of Bioactive Phytochemicals in Plant-Based Matrices and Application as Additives in Meat and Meat Products

The development of plant-based functional food ingredients has become a major focus of the modern food industry as a response to changes in consumer attitudes. In particular, many consumers are switching to a plant-based diet because of their concerns about animal-derived foods on the environment, human health, and animal welfare. There has therefore been great interest in identifying, isolating, and characterizing functional ingredients from botanical sources, especially waste streams from food and agricultural production. However, many of these functional ingredients cannot simply be incorporated into foods because of their poor solubility, stability, or activity characteristics. In this article, we begin by reviewing conventional and emerging methods of extracting plant-based bioactive agents from natural resources including ultrasound-, microwave-, pulsed electric field- and supercritical fluid-based methods. We then provide a brief overview of different methods to characterize these plant-derived ingredients, including conventional, chromatographic, spectroscopic, and mass spectrometry methods. Finally, we discuss the design of plant-based delivery systems to encapsulate, protect, and deliver these functional ingredients, including micelles, liposomes, emulsions, solid lipid nanoparticles, and microgels. The potential benefits of these plant-based delivery systems are highlighted by discussing their use for incorporating functional ingredients into traditional meat products. However, the same technologies could also be employed to introduce functional ingredients into plant-based meat analogs

Red Beetroot. A Potential Source of Natural Additives for the Meat Industry

Currently, the food industry is looking for alternatives to synthetic additives in processed food products, so research investigating new sources of compounds with high biological activity is worthwhile and becoming more common. There are many dierent types of vegetables that contain bioactive compounds, and additional features of some vegetables include uses as natural colorants and antioxidants. In this sense, and due to the special composition of beetroot, the use of this vegetable allows for the extraction of a large number of compounds with special interest to the meat industry. This includes colorants (betalains), antioxidants (betalains and phenolic compounds), and preservatives (nitrates), which can be applied for the reformulation of meat products, thus limiting the number and quantity of synthetic additives added to these foods and, at the same time, increase their shelf-life. Despite all these benefits, the application of beetroot or its products (extracts, juice, powder, etc.) in the meat industry is very limited, and the body of available research on beetroot as an ingredient is scarce. Therefore, in this review, the main biologically active compounds present in beetroot, the implications and benefits that their consumption has for human health, as well as studies investigating the use beetroot in the reformulation of meat and meat products are presented in a comprehensible manner

Recent discoveries in the field of lipid bio-based ingredients for meat processing

Current culture and pace of lifestyle, together with consumer demand for ready-to-eat foods, has influenced the food industry, particularly the meat sector. However, due to the important role that diet plays in human health, consumers demand safe and healthy food products. As a consequence, even foods that meet expectations for convenience and organoleptic properties must also meet expectations from a nutritional standpoint. One of the main nutritionally negative aspects of meat products is the content and composition of fat. In this sense, the meat industry has spent decades researching the best strategies for the reformulation of traditional products, without having a negative impact in technological processes or in the sensory acceptance of the final product. However, the enormous variety of meat products as well as industrial and culinary processes means that a single strategy cannot be established, despite the large volume of work carried out in this regard. Therefore, taking all the components of this complex situation into account and utilizing the large amount of scientific information that is available, this review aims to comprehensively analyze recent advances in the use of lipid bio-based materials to reformulate meat products, as well as their nutritional, technological, and sensorial implications.Axencia Galega de Innovación | Ref. IN607A2019 / 01Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. FJCI-2016-29486CYTED | Ref. 119RT056

Microencapsulated healthy oil mixtures to enhance the quality of foal pâtés

This study aimed to evaluate the use of microencapsulated oil mixtures as partial animal fat replacers and their effects on the physicochemical, nutritional and sensory qualities of foal pâtés. Three different batches were manufactured: a control (CON) formulation, with foal dorsal subcutaneous fat (30 g/100 g), and treatments 1 and 2 (T1 and T2), with 50% of the animal fat replaced by microcapsules containing algal oil mixed with walnut oil (T1) or pistachio oil (T2). The reformulated samples presented significant (p < 0.001) diminutions of fat contents, which achieved reductions of 34.22% (“reduced fat content”) and 28.17% in the T1 and T2 samples, respectively, and the lipid reformulation did not affect (p > 0.05) the texture or lipid oxidation of the samples. Furthermore, both microencapsulated oil mixtures significantly (p < 0.001) reduced (11–15%) saturated fatty acid (SFA) concentrations and increased (p < 0.001) mono- (T2) and polyunsaturated (T1) fatty acid contents (8% and 68%, respectively), contributing to the obtainment of nutritional indices in line with health recommendations. Additionally, consumer acceptability did not display significant (p > 0.05) differences among samples. Hence, the outcomes indicated that the incorporation of these microencapsulated oil mixtures as partial animal fat replacers, especially the T1 mixture, represents a promising strategy to obtain healthier foal pâtés, without compromising consumer approval.This research was funded by Interreg V SUDOE, through the OPEN2PRESERVE project, grant no. SOE2/P5/E0804.Acknowledgements to the Universidad Pública de Navarra for granting Aurora Cittadini with a predoctoral scholarship (Resolution 787/2019). Thanks to GAIN (Axencia Galega de Innovación) for supporting this study (grant no. IN607A2019/01). P.E.S., M.P., R.D. and J.M.L. are members of the HealthyMeat network, funded by CYTED (ref. 119RT0568). The authors wish to thank to the technical staff of the Institute for Agri-food and Technology and Infrastructures of Navarre (INTIASA) for the management of the animals and for the foal samples supplied for this research. Paulo E.S. Munekata acknowledges postdoctoral fellowship support from the Ministry of Science and Innovation (MCIN, Spain) “Juan de la Cierva” program (IJC2020-043358-I)

Sodium Reduction in Traditional Dry-Cured Pork Belly Using Glasswort Powder (Salicornia herbacea) as a Partial NaCl Replacer

Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/).[EN] Sodium chloride (NaCl) is a key ingredient in the processing of traditional dry-cured meat products by improving microbial safety, sensory attributes and technological properties. However, increasing concern about the consumption of sodium and health has been supporting the development of low-sodium meat products. Several strategies to reduce sodium in dry-cured meat product have been tested, although the followed approaches sometimes result in undesirable characteristics concerning flavor, texture and mouthfeel. The use of halophytic plants such as glasswort (Salicornia herbacea) in food matrices has been suggested as a novel strategy to reduce sodium content, due its salty flavor. The main aim of the present study is to produce traditional dry-cured pork bellies from the Bísaro breed using glasswort as a NaCl partial replacer, and compare it with dry-cured bellies salted either with NaCl or a mix of NaCl + KCl. Control bellies (BC) were salted with 100% of NaCl, the second formulation (BK) had 50% of NaCl and 50% of KCl, and the third formulation (BG) had 90% of NaCl and 10% of glasswort powder (GP). After production, the bellies were evaluated for aw, pH, CIELab coordinates, weight loss, proximal composition, TBARS, collagen and chloride contents, fatty acid profile and sensory attributes. The use of BG in dry-cured pork bellies did not affect processing indicators such as weight loss, aw and pH. Concerning CIELab, only the coordinates L* and hue angle from the external surface color of BG were statistically different from BC and BK. As expected, ash and NaCl contents differed from BG to the other two formulations. SFA and indexes AI and TI were lower, whereas the MUFA and h/H ratio were higher in BG than other treatments, leading to a product with a healthier lipid profile. The sensory evaluation revealed differences in appearance, taste and flavor among treatments, but did not indicate any negative effects of BG in the product attributes. This study reinforces the potential of BG as a natural sodium reducer for the production of traditional dry-cured pork bellies.SIThe authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for financial support through national funds FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC) to CIMO (UIDB/00690/2020 and UIDP/00690/2020) and SusTEC (LA/P/0007/2021). Grants of I.F., A.L. and L.V. are due to NORTE-01-0247-FEDER-072234. P.E.S.M. acknowledges postdoctoral fellowship support from the Ministry of Science and Innovation (MCIN, Spain) “Juan de la Cierva” program (IJC2020-043358-I).The authors are grateful to Laboratory of Carcass and Meat Quality of Agriculture School of Polytechnic Institute of Bragança ‘Cantinho do Alfredo’. The authors A.T. and P.E.S.M. are members of the Healthy Meat network, funded by CYTED (ref: 119RT0568)

Physicochemical composition and nutritional properties of deer burger enhanced with healthier oils

Deer meat is characterized by low fat and cholesterol contents and high amounts of protein and polyunsaturated fatty acids. In this regard, the aim of this work was to assess the influence of pork backfat substitution by healthier oils on chemical composition, fatty acid profile, texture profile and sensory analysis of deer burger. In addition, pH, color parameters and lipid oxidation were evaluated at 0, 6, 12 and 18 days of storage. For this study, four different treatments of deer burgers—100% pork backfat, 100% tiger nut oil, 100% chia oil, and 100% linseed oil—were elaborated. The fat replacement reduced fat and protein contents and increased moisture amounts, whereas ashes and texture parameters of deer burgers were not affected. Fatty acid profile was significantly improved with the animal fat replacement. In this regard, a significant decrease in saturated fatty acids was found in all reformulated batches, whereas in chia and linseed burger samples a dramatic increase in polyunsaturated fatty acids, omega-3 content and a reduction of n-3/n-6 ratio was observed. In the deer burger prepared with tiger nut oil a significant increase in monounsaturated fatty acids was found. Another important aspect is that the replacement of animal fat by tiger nut or linseed oil emulsion did not affect the global acceptance of deer burgers. Regarding color parameters, redness was the most affected during the whole display presenting a reduction around 50% after 18 days of storage. On the other hand, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) values were also affected by fat replacement and storage time, observing the highest values (2.43 mg MDA/kg) in deer burgers prepared with chia at the end of refrigerated period. Finally, from a commercial point of view, the possibility of making claims such as “low fat burgers”, “reduced saturated fat” or “high content of omega-3” makes the reformulated burgers more attractive to the consumer.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. RTC-2016-5327-2CYTED | Ref. 119RT0568Axencia Galega de Innovación | Ref. IN607A2019/01Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. FJCI-2016-2948

Use of healthy emulsion hydrogels to improve the quality of pork burgers

The present research evaluated the use of oil mixture emulsion hydrogels as animal fat replacers and their effect on the physicochemical, nutritional and sensory characteristics of pork burgers. Three different types of burgers were manufactured: control (samples elaborated with 100% pork fat), T1 and T2 (pork fat totally replaced by emulsion hydrogels of walnut or pistachio oil and algal oil, respectively). Fat replacement increased the moisture and ash contents and colour parameters (L* and b*) of pork burgers. Modified samples turned out to be firmer and chewier than those in the control group. The addition of oil emulsion hydrogels caused a significant decrease in fat and energy contents and the products obtained can be considered “reduced fat content”. Moreover, the content of saturated fatty acids decreased, while mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids increased, constituting an improvement in health indices. Sensory differences were found between the samples and T2 was the most preferred for flavour and overall. However, both modified burgers had good levels of acceptability. To conclude, the use of the proposed oil mixture emulsion hydrogels as pork backfat substitutes represents a promising strategy to obtain healthier pork burgers without negatively affecting technological or sensory properties.The authors thank GAIN (Axencia Galega de Innovación) for supporting this research (grant number IN607A2019/01)

Sodium reduction in traditional dry-cured pork belly using glasswort powder (Salicornia herbacea) as a partial NaCl replacer

Sodium chloride (NaCl) is a key ingredient in the processing of traditional dry-cured meat products by improving microbial safety, sensory attributes and technological properties. However, increasing concern about the consumption of sodium and health has been supporting the development of low-sodium meat products. Several strategies to reduce sodium in dry-cured meat product have been tested, although the followed approaches sometimes result in undesirable characteristics concerning flavor, texture and mouthfeel. The use of halophytic plants such as glasswort (Salicornia herbacea) in food matrices has been suggested as a novel strategy to reduce sodium content, due its salty flavor. The main aim of the present study is to produce traditional dry-cured pork bellies from the Bísaro breed using glasswort as a NaCl partial replacer, and compare it with dry-cured bellies salted either with NaCl or a mix of NaCl + KCl. Control bellies (BC) were salted with 100% of NaCl, the second formulation (BK) had 50% of NaCl and 50% of KCl, and the third formulation (BG) had 90% of NaCl and 10% of glasswort powder (GP). After production, the bellies were evaluated for aw, pH, CIELab coordinates, weight loss, proximal composition, TBARS, collagen and chloride contents, fatty acid profile and sensory attributes. The use of BG in dry-cured pork bellies did not affect processing indicators such as weight loss, aw and pH. Concerning CIELab, only the coordinates L* and hue angle from the external surface color of BG were statistically different from BC and BK. As expected, ash and NaCl contents differed from BG to the other two formulations. SFA and indexes AI and TI were lower, whereas the MUFA and h/H ratio were higher in BG than other treatments, leading to a product with a healthier lipid profile. The sensory evaluation revealed differences in appearance, taste and flavor among treatments, but did not indicate any negative effects of BG in the product attributes. This study reinforces the potential of BG as a natural sodium reducer for the production of traditional dry-cured pork belliesThe authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for financial support through national funds FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC) to CIMO (UIDB/00690/2020 and UIDP/00690/2020) and SusTEC (LA/P/0007/2021). Grants of I.F., A.L. and L.V. are due to NORTE-01-0247-FEDER-072234. P.E.S.M. acknowledges postdoctoral fellowship support from the Ministry of Science and Innovation (MCIN, Spain) “Juan de la Cierva” program (IJC2020-043358-I).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Influence of temperature, solvent and pH on the selective extraction of phenolic compounds from tiger nuts by-products: Triple-TOF-LC-MS-MS characterization.

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of temperature, solvent (hydroethanolic mixtures) and pH on the recovery of individual phenolic compounds from 'horchata' by-products. These parameters were optimized by response surface methodology and triple-TOF-LC-MS-MS was selected as the analytical tool to identify and quantify the individual compounds. The optimum extraction conditions were 50% ethanol, 35 °C and pH 2.5, which resulted in values of 222.6 mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/100 g dry matter and 1948.1 µM trolox equivalent (TE)/g of dry matter for total phenolic content (TPC) and trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), respectively. The extraction of phenolic compounds by the conventional solvent method with agitation was influenced by temperature (p = 0.0073), and more strongly, by the content of ethanol in the extraction solution (p = 0.0007) while the pH did not show a great impact (p = 0.7961). On the other hand, the extraction of phenolic acids was affected by temperature (p = 0.0003) and by ethanol amount (p < 0.0001) but not by the pH values (p = 0.53). In addition, the percentage of ethanol influenced notably the extraction of both 4-vinylphenol (p = 0.0002) and the hydroxycinnamic acids (p = 0.0039). Finally, the main individual phenolic extracted with hydroethanolic mixtures was 4-vinylphenol (303.3 μg/kg DW) followed by spinacetin3-O-glucosyl-(1→6)-glucoside (86.2 μg/kg DW) and sinensetin (77.8 μg/kg DW)