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.
Development of bioprocesses for the valorization of by-products from f...
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).
Innovation of food (bio)processing using smart and mild technologies and fermentation to improve nutritional quality while ensuring safety and environmental sustainability throughout the shelf life of foods. Nutritional quality and biodiversity are targeted through both advanced and sustainable processes (including encapsulation) to preserve and improve at-risk (micro)nutrient composition of relevant food categories and exploiting microbiological and biotechnological applications to impact on nutritional quality. Such (bio)technological approaches (e.g., fermentation, enzyme treatments, etc.) are validated by process markers also directed to ensure food production safety and quality targeting new food habits (e.g., ready to eat food and novel food consumption) and sustainability, promoting production efficiency and utilisation of alternative sources (in connection with Spoke 2 and 3).
Identification of nutrient and non-nutrient food components (and their metabolic products) potentially involved in the promotion of consumer health, and evaluation of their bio accessibility, bioavailability, and effect on the gut microbiota, using in silico, in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo approaches on humans/animals to confirm the actual absorption and bioactivity of non-nutrient components also considering specific dietary patterns and target groups.
Prototyping of new sustainable and healthy products to meet consumer needs in terms of nutritional and functional targets, but also sensory characteristics and convenience, thus increasing adoption in the long term by promoting exploitation of the previous implemented approaches (see WP4.1, WP4.2) to develop new pilot food products (food design) also in connection with start-up acceleration programmes (activities are also in connection with Spoke 3).
Selection of raw materials/ingredients with improved nutritional characteristics and limited undesirable components (M12)
Development or improvement of at least 3 biotechnological approaches to innovate food production in terms of nutritional quality, safety, and sustainability (M30)
Evaluation of the bioavailability and bioactivity of at least two components of foods proven to directly impact human health (M36)
Scouting and evaluation of existing prototypes of sustainable and healthy products (M12)
Food proteins from plant or animal origin may include encrypted peptide sequences which possess potential biological functions or physiological effects. Research on Bioactive Peptides (BAP) has intensified and the contribution of BAP to a healthier nutrition has been widely discussed in the scientific community. New BAP and numerous products are under development by food companies, exploiting the potential of food-derived materials. Thus, a diverse use of side streams, especially if they contain valuable proteins (e.g., cheese whey and oilseed press cake) would be convenient as well as undeferrable for the sustainability of food supply chains. BAP may be released in vivo or in vitro from their parent protein through proteolysis by: digestive enzymes; fermentation with starter cultures; enzymes derived from microorganisms and plants, or by combining these methods. The emerging food ingredient industry is aiming at generating BAP using microbial strains in scaling up processing.
Chemical and biological methods have been developed and applied to screen for BAP that may promote different health effects. The purpose of the project is to design bioprocess for the production of hydrolysates (HL) containing BAP with specific reported biological activities. The project tasks are: selection of microbial strains of food origin; screening of their proteolytic activity in blends containing food side streams; characterization of BAP by UPLC-HR/MS; in vitro cell culture testing of HL biological activities. The persistence of bioactivity and BAP profile of HL will be evaluated also after simulated gastrointestinal digestion in vitro. The designed process will be implemented by producing HL into pilot-scale bioreactor. If needed, the final HL will be formulated in a form capable to protect the BAP from gastric and duodenal breakdown. The operation will be set up depending on selected strains, conditions, etc. that will be implemented for the production of HL.
The creation of HL from side streams can serve as a proof of concept for a new category of products to be used as platform for developing more sustainable ingredients and foods. Enzymatic treatments and fermentation are affordable operations to enhance sensory and techno-functional properties and to improve nutritional value of the products. The project aims at tailoring the enzymatic and microbial activities and assessing their effect on the nutritional quality of the HL. This goal will be mainly attained by exploiting microbial strain diversity and tuning the environmental factors to modulate their proteolytic activity. Another main outcome will be resulted from the investigation on the production and stability after simulated digestion of BAP by specific strains. Finally, the project will lead to recommendations for the use of these product concepts, thus valorizing underutilized protein sources and helping to resolve some challenges related to circularity of food supply chains.
