Abstract
Food quality and safety are key aspects to guarantee that foods reach consumers in optimal conditions from the point of view of freshness and microbiology. Nanotechnology offers significant potential to secure or even enhance these aspects. Novel technologies, such as nanofabrication and nanoencapsulation, can provide new added value solutions for the fortification of foods with bioactives and targeted controlled release in the gut. Nanomaterials can also support food preservation aspects by being added directly into a food matrix or into food contact materials such as packaging. Thus, nanomaterials can be leveraged in the form of nanocomposites in food packaging design by melt compounding, solvent casting, lamination or electrohydrodynamic processing (EHDP) to promote passive, active, and even bioactive properties such as barrier, antimicrobial, antioxidant, and oxygen scavenging roles and the controlled release of functional ingredients. These attributes can be exerted either by the intended or non-intended migration of the nanomaterials or by the active substances they may carry. Lastly, nanomaterials can be advantageously applied to provide unique opportunities in Circular Bioeconomy strategies in relation to the valorization of, for instance, agro-industrial wastes and food processing by-products.
Highlights
Food quality and safety are key aspects to guarantee that foods reach consumers in optimal conditions from the point of view of freshness and microbiology
Nanocomposites represent an alternative to conventional technologies for improving biopolymer passive properties by adding nanoparticles for which at least one dimension is in the nanometer range
Wardhono et al [1] developed a fast, highly-efficient, and eco-friendly preparation method for the extraction of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) from BC. This method consisted of a two-step process, namely the partial depolymerization of BC under ultrasonic irradiation and the extraction of crystalline regions using microwaves, assisted by manganese (II) chloride (MnCl2)-catalyzed hydrolysis, successfully yielding bacterial cellulose nanocrystals (BC-NCs) with similar features to commercially available nanocrystalline cellulose
Summary
Food quality and safety are key aspects to guarantee that foods reach consumers in optimal conditions from the point of view of freshness and microbiology. The use of nanotechnology for food applications is a rapidly evolving field, and given the specific properties of nanomaterials and their tremendous potential in food science and packaging technology, an increased number of innovations that contribute to improving food quality, safety, and health impacts are foreseen.
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