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The aim of this work was to evaluate the characteristics of nine kaki vinegars produced using different yeasts and bacteria traditionally involved in wine production, and to evaluate their acidity, density, total phenolic content, and antioxidant activity. Furthermore, the study characterized the volatile fingerprinting by headspace-gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS) and by two-dimensional gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GCxGC-TOF-MS). Finally, individual carotenoids were characterized using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). More than a thousand distinguishing molecules were found. It was discovered that vinegars fermented with S. cerevisiae produced a larger number of volatile chemicals. Among the three vinegars produced with this strain, the one fermented with Acetobacter_vino seemed to have a more elaborate flavour profile than all the other samples. The vinegar produced utilizing the mixture of T. delbruekii and Acetobacter was the only kind to have a high concentration of carotenoids.

Cottonseed is a sustainable source of plant protein, producing ~10 million metric tons of protein globally. This protein has the potential to fulfil the annual protein requirement of more than half a billion people globally. Its functional properties have established the potential of cottonseed protein (CSP) as a candidate for alleviating malnutrition in the Asian and African continents. Regardless of these quality attributes, the inherent association of gossypol with CSP makes it unsuitable for direct human consumption due to its toxicity.

Healthier meat products have a major economic potential and are attracting considerable research and media attention to meet the growing and complex consumer demand. Whether this potential will be realized and at what speed is contingent on consumers’ acceptance of these novel foods. This study uses a cross-cultural context to co-create new healthier meat products, while mapping the conditions leading to consumers’ product acceptance (vs. rejection). Results from online focus groups conducted in Denmark, Spain and the United Kingdom show that consumers generally have a negative attitude toward healthier meat products due to unfamiliarity and perception of over-processing. Nevertheless, partial meat-substitution with plant-based ingredients together with fat and salt reduction show specific conditions under which consumers’ acceptance would be possible. This is further related to product-specific factors: ingredients and base meat, and marketing-related factors: labelling and packaging. Finally, implications and recommendations for the manufacturing and marketing of new healthier meat products are provided.

There is an increased interest and need to make our economy more circular and our diets healthier and more sustainable. One way to achieve this is to develop upcycled foods that contain food industry by-products in their formulation. In this context, the aim of this study was to develop muffins containing upcycled sunflower flour (a by-product from the sunflower oil industry) and assess the effects of sunflower flour addition on the fibre, protein, amino acid, mineral content, and antioxidant activity measured by a Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) assay and Photo chemiluminescence (PCL) assay. Results show that the sunflower flour inclusion significantly improved all the parameters analysed as part of this study. A more balanced muffin amino acid profile was achieved, thanks to the increased levels of lysine, threonine, and methionine, the limiting essential amino acids of wheat flour. We can conclude that upcycled ingredients, such as sunflower flour, could be used for the nutritional improvement of baked goods, such as muffins. Their addition can result in several nutritional advantages that could be communicated on packaging through the use of the appropriate EU nutrition claims, such as those on protein, fibre, and mineral content.