Bioactive Molecules and Natural Functional Ingredients in Foods and Beverages
A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Quality and Safety".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 1 September 2025 | Viewed by 852
Special Issue Editors
Interests: process engineering; Interaction process-products; food; antioxidant properties
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Functional ingredients in foods and beverages are added to improve the sensory characteristics, stability, and nutritional value of products. These ingredients are carefully selected to serve specific purposes, such as enhancing flavor, texture, shelf life, or functionality, while also providing additional benefits beyond basic nutrition.
Common functional ingredients include preservatives, emulsifiers, sweeteners, thickeners, stabilizers, and flavor enhancers. For example, emulsifiers such as lecithin help blend water and oil components in products such as dressings and mayonnaise, ensuring a smooth and consistent texture. Similarly, thickeners such as pectin or agar are used in jams, jellies, and sauces to create the desired viscosity and mouthfeel.
In addition to these traditional functional ingredients, more recent developments in food technology have introduced ingredients such as plant-based proteins, functional fibers, and plant extracts. These ingredients can serve multiple purposes, including enhancing the nutritional profiles of foods and beverages or meeting specific consumer demand, such as for plant-based or gluten-free formulations.
For example, plant-based proteins derived from pulses, soy, or oilseeds are increasingly used in dairy and meat alternatives, offering functional benefits such as texture, mouthfeel, and nutritional enrichment. Functional fibers, such as inulin or psyllium, are commonly added to improve the texture of baked goods or beverages, while also contributing to the overall fiber content without altering taste.
Moreover, the use of natural flavor enhancers such as essential oils and plant extracts is on the rise, as consumers demand products that are more natural and free from artificial additives. Ingredients such as green tea extract, ginger, and turmeric can provide unique flavors while also offering added functional properties such as antioxidant activity or preservation.
The application of functional ingredients extends beyond improving the taste and appearance of foods and beverages; it also involves enhancing the product’s performance, stability, and shelf life. Rosemary and grapefruit seed extracts have antimicrobial properties that help extend the shelf lives of certain foods. They are natural alternative solutions to preservatives such as sodium benzoate or potassium sorbate.
Ultimately, functional ingredients play an essential role in food processing and product development, enabling manufacturers to create products that meet evolving consumer needs and preferences while maintaining optimal quality and performance.
Prof. Dr. Irina Ioannou
Guest Editor
Dr. Marie Dufrechou
Guest Editor Assistant
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- natural products
- functional ingredients
- bioactive molecules
- food industry
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