Funded under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), Mission 4 Component 2 Investment 1.3, Theme 10.
Funded under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), Mission 4 Component 2 Investment 1.3, Theme 10.
Reformulation of food products to increase micronutrients and bioactiv...
Coordinator
Reformulation or improvement of relevant food products in the national context in order to: a) implement the nutritional characteristics also by reducing antinutrients or using bioprocessed ingredients (from raw products to ingredients) and limit the use of undesirable components (e.g. by using bioactives) along the food system b) improve food formulation and composition based on consumer perception and needs identified for specific target groups (in connection with Spoke 5 and 6) c) promote clear and ad hoc labelling as an information tool (in connection with Spoke 1 and 7) to increase the willingness to buy improved foods d) guarantee safety and affordability of new products (in connection with Spoke 1 and 3).
Selection of raw materials/ingredients with improved nutritional characteristics and limited undesirable components (M12)
There is increasing concern, also in Italy, on the problems related to insufficient intake of some vitamins and minerals above all in specific groups of population due to unbalanced or inadequate diets (e.g., monotonous or excluding some class of foods). This scenario is particularly important in the context of healthy and sustainable diets which could exacerbate the risk of inadequate intake of some critical nutrients fundamental for physiological functions and mainly present in animal-based products (e.g., vitamin D, calcium, iron, vitamin B12). In addition, there is an increased interest in the potential significant role played by food bioactive compounds in health maintenance since higher intake have been associated with a lower risk of metabolic and other chronic diseases, even if specific dietary recommendations have not been developed.
In this context, reformulation of food products to enhance the content and/or the availability of critical nutrient and non-nutrient compounds could represent a strategy to facilitate an appropriate intake in different target groups.
The project will consist of various operational steps that can be summarized as follows:
