Conventional and Emerging Novel Techniques for the Extraction of Pectin and Applications of Pectin

Abstract

Agricultural crops and its by-product utilization is an emerging area in Food Industry. The waste generated from processing industries is generally disposed off, ultimately hampering the environment. However, this waste is a rich source of many valuable components, pectin being one of them. Pectin, a heteropolysaccharide has numerous nutritional and functional properties making its extraction a matter of utmost importance. Although it is present in cell wall of most of the plants but its amount, structure and chemical composition differs between plants and makes its recovery tedious. In order to commercialize, yield and quality of pectin are important parameters to be considered during extraction. Therefore, selection of a convenient technique is essential. However, conventional extraction method is being widely used; it has some limitations such as laborious handling and certain environmental concerns. Therefore, there is a need to exploit novel pectin extraction techniques. In addition to that, there are many other parameters (increase in cost and skilled labor) to be considered in order to have clear insight of the possibilities to scale up the process. The present review discusses the chemical structure and classification of pectin, its properties and source of recovery with primary focus on innovative pectin extraction techniques.