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Fruit and vegetable byproducts (FVBP) present high content of bioactive compounds and dietary fibers and have demonstrated a positive modulatory effect upon gut microbiota composition. In the present study, the prebiotic potential of a FVBP flour obtained from solid byproducts after fruit and vegetable processing was evaluated after in vitro gastrointestinal digestion. An initial screening with three strains of Lactobacillus (Lactobacillus casei 01, Lactobacillus rhamnosus R11 and Lactobacillus acidophilus LA-5®) and one Bifidobacterium strain (Bifidobacterium animalis spp. lactis BB12®) was carried out and then the prebiotic effect of FVBP flour was performed with fecal samples of five donors. The changes in gut microbiota were evaluated at 0, 12, 24 and 48 h of fermentation by the real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) method with 16S rRNA-based specific primers. The pH and short chain fatty acids (SCFA) production at each fermentation time were assessed. The fructooligosaccharides (FOS) were used as positive control. The impact of FVBP flour upon cell viability was also evaluated. FVBP flour showed higher prebiotic effect than FOS on growth enhancement of Lactobacillus after 48 h of fermentation and similar bifidogenic effect as FOS on Bifidobacterium growth at 12, 24 and 48 h of fermentation. SCFA production was observed when FVBP flour was used as carbon source, including butyrate, which supports the prebiotic potential of this flour. Additionally, it was observed that after in vitro gastrointestinal digestion, the FVBP flour at 3% promoted cell metabolism of Caco-2 cell line up to 67%. Thus, the present study demonstrates the viability of using a fruit and vegetable byproducts flour as a potential sustainable prebiotic source., (Copyright © 2020. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

The aim of this study was to develop biodegradable films using fruit and vegetable residue (FVR) flour with different granulometry range and pectin levels. The FVR flour was divided in three fractions, according to their granulometric distribution: A (425-500 μm), B (212-300 μm) and C (<150 μm). FVR presented heterogeneous particle size distribution and fibrous structure showing granular compounds adhered to the surface. The fiber contents decreased according to granulometry, whereas the protein content increased. The films obtained from FVR were malleable, homogeneous, yellowish, and presented high solubility (90%). The granulometry reduction and the pectin addition have significantly improved the viscosity and the yellow color of the film solutions (FS). There was decrease of solubility (50%) and improvement of the mechanical properties of the pectin-based films: decrease of elongation (16-30%) and increase of tensile strength (2.88 ± 0.79 MPa). The sorption isotherms of the pectin-FVR films evidenced the lower availability of polar groups able to work as water-sorption sites. Therefore, different residue fractions could have different applications depending on their particle size and composition, either as source of dietary fibers (the thickest fractions) or as raw material for film production., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Agro-industrial byproducts are considered good sources of macronutrients and phytochemicals. Fruit and vegetable residues (FVR), obtained after the production of an isotonic beverage, have previously been characterized containing 80% insoluble dietary fibers from total fibers (48.4%), 26% available carbohydrates, 9.5% proteins and 5% lipids. Nevertheless, fruit and vegetables provide phytochemicals which have been related to human health such as phenolic compounds. The loss of specific compounds over the production process is related to their partitioning between fruit and vegetables and byproducts. However, phenolic profile of FVR remains unknown. This work is focused on the evaluation of FVR as a natural source of these bioactive compounds. For this purpose, pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) has been proposed as extraction technique for recovering phenolic compounds from FVR. The experimental variables were temperature and percentage of solvent (ethanol and water). Phenolic compounds extracts were characterized by UPLC-ESI-Q-TOF-MS and a discussion about phenolic and macronutrient interactions was established. Globally, 88 compounds were tentatively identified: phenolic acids (28), flavonoids (32), and other polyphenols (28). The PLE conditions applied yielded different breaking matrix-analyte interactions leading to an increase in the number of compounds. The highest phenolic acids content was achieved with high temperature while lower temperatures were more efficient in extracting flavonoid. By establishing the phenolics profile in food byproducts such as FVR, it is possible to more effectively apply these byproducts as nutraceutical, food or pharmaceutical ingredients., Practical Application: Flow diagram of bioactive compounds recovering from isotonic beverage byproduct is proposed using pressurized liquid extraction. The plant-bioactives mechanism relies on fruit and vegetable byproducts changes under different extraction conditions. The obtained extracts can most effectively be applied as nutraceuticals or as ingredients in food or pharmaceutical inputs., (© 2018 Institute of Food Technologists®.)