Valorisation of pineapple wastes for food and therapeutic applications

Publication date: Available online 25 September 2018Source: Trends in Food Science & TechnologyAuthor(s): Shivali Banerjee, Vijayaraghavan Ranganathan, Antonio Patti, Amit AroraAbstractBackgroundFruit and vegetable processing industries account for the largest segment of food waste which is produced worldwide. The disposal of this waste requires a huge capital investment, majority of which is the transportation costs. This results in dumping and burning of these wastes in open fields.Scope and approachIn this review, we have focussed on the valorisation schemes to extract valuable biomolecules from pineapple on-farm and processing waste for food and therapeutics applications. Biorefinery approach has been highlighted for sustainable production of value added products.Key findings and conclusionThe high content of carbohydrate (55%) in pineapple waste makes it an appropriate substrate for the production of valuable chemicals such as xylitol, xylooligosaccharides, lactic acid, succinic acid and others, which have potential application in the food industry. The enzyme, bromelain, which is present in pineapple, has potential for application in therapeutics as well as in the food industry. Such utilisation of waste could prove to be a better alternative in the mitigation of environmental problems and also to propose a novel method to produce valuable chemicals. Despite the opportunities, there are challenges in the valorisation of this waste, largely due to the poor understanding ...
Source: Trends in Food Science and Technology - Category: Food Science Source Type: research