Food Sustainability: Using Byproducts from Food Industry and Unconventional Food Sources

Dear Colleagues,

We cordially invite you to contribute to this Special Issue, “Food Sustainability: Using Byproducts from Food Industry and Unconventional Food Sources”, a current topic that has received the interest of many researchers.
The projected increase in the world population to over 9 billions indicates the need for more sustainable food production, in quantity and quality (e.g., the scarcity of protein sources for human consumption is highlighted). In this context of food and resources scarcity predicted for the near future, there is a need to rethink the human diet, to ensure both a healthy, well-fed world population and a healthy environment. The use of alternative sources of food—namely, underexplored ingredients and by-products from the food industry—in order to ensure healthy and sustainable diets is a relevant strategy to be considered by all stakeholders.
The development of new food products based on alternative raw materials will be necessary to increase the efficient use of resources. However, the involvement of consumers is crucial for the success of this action, and their attitudes towards new products must be taken into account in the previous stages of product design.
The trends in the food sector, updated every year due to different socio-economic factors and lifestyle issues, must also be taken into account in the design strategies for new food products. Phenomena such as snackification, personalized nutrition, plant proteins, vegan, and others should be the drivers for the food design process.
The incorporation of unconventional raw materials and by-products of the food industry in the human diet is a huge challenge from a technological point of view, as well as in terms of consumer acceptance and the legal framework.
There is already a large set of under-explored resources with high nutritional value, which have been the subject of intensive studies on their incorporation in the food chain. Noteworthy are microalgae, seaweeds, insects, ancestral plant species that have fallen out of use, various unconventional plants, and fish species that are not regularly used in human nutrition. The valorization of these food sources is urgent and requires in-depth studies, in nutritional and technological terms.
Considering the high levels of waste associated with food processing (greater than 30%), the valorization of the respective by-products in a circular economy context is relevant. It is also essential to develop research work that will overcome the associated technological, sensory, and nutritional limitations. It is essential to develop multidisciplinary approaches, involving all the links of the value chain, from production to the final consumer, reducing carbon and nitrogen footprints, to achieve solutions with a real economic impact, contributing to overcoming issues related to food scarcity while increasing the sustainability of the planet.
These are some of the current topics, but you are welcome to add new ones and contribute to this highly impactful Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Anabela Raymundo
Dr. Isabel Sousa
Dr. María Dolores Torres
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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• Unconventional food sources
• Valorization of by-products
• Food rheology and texture
• Food scarcity
• Trends in the food industry
• Food product design
• Sensory evaluation
• Innovative products
• Design thinking in food industry
• Sustainability of food
• Food for groups with special requirements (gluten-free cereal foods)
• Sustainability and economic viability
• Re-introduction of by-products into the food value chain
• Consumer acceptance and attitudes towards innovative food products
• Market feasibility