Citrus production produces about 15 million tons of by-products/waste worldwide every year. Due to their high content of bioactive compounds, several extraction techniques can be applied to obtain extracts rich in valuable compounds and further application into food applications. Distillation and solvent extraction continues to be the most used and applied extraction techniques, followed by newer techniques such as microwave-assisted extraction and pulsed electric field extraction. Although the composition of these extracts and essential oils directly depends on the edaphoclimatic conditions to which the fruit/plant was exposed, the main active compounds are D-limonene, carotenoids, and carbohydrates. Pectin, one of the most abundant carbohydrates present in Citrus peels, can be used as a biodegradable polymer to develop new food packaging, and the extracted bioactive compounds can be easily added directly or indirectly to foods to increase their shelf-life. One of the applications is their incorporation in active food packaging for microbiological and/or oxidation inhibition, prolonging foods’ shelf-life and, consequently, contributing to reducing food spoilage. This review highlights some of the most used and effective extraction techniques and the application of the obtained essential oils and extracts directly or indirectly (through active packaging) to foods.

Algae and seaweeds are used in cookery since the beginnings of human civilization, particularly in several Asian cultures. Phenolic compounds are secondary metabolites produced by aquatic and terrestrial plants for their natural defense against external stimuli, which possess powerful antimicrobial and antioxidant properties that can be very important for the food industry. The main objective of this study was to develop a whey protein concentrate active coating, incorporated with a Fucus vesiculosus extract in order to delay the lipid oxidation of chicken breasts. Ten hydroethanolic extracts from F. vesiculosus were obtained and their antioxidant capacity was evaluated through two antioxidant activity assays: the DPPH radical scavenging activity and β-carotene bleaching assay. The total content in phenolics compounds was also determined by Folin-Ciocalteu method. The chosen extract was the one obtained from the freeze-dried F. vesiculosus using 75% (v/v) ethanol as extraction solvent. The extract was successfully incorporated into a whey protein film and successfully strengthened the thickness, tensile strength, and elastic modulus. The active film also was able to inhibit the chicken breasts lipid oxidation for 25 days of storage.

The development of active food packaging has evolved rapidly in recent years, offering innovative solutions to enhance food preservation and safety while addressing sustainability challenges. This review compiles and analyzes recent advancements (2019–2024) in release-type active packaging, focusing on essential oils, natural extracts, and phenolic compounds as active agents. Primarily plant-derived, these compounds exhibit significant antioxidant and antimicrobial activities, extending shelf life and enhancing food quality. Technological strategies such as encapsulation and polymer blending have been increasingly adopted to overcome challenges related to volatility, solubility, and sensory impact. Integrating bio-based polymers, including chitosan, starch, and polylactic acid, further supports the development of environmentally friendly packaging systems. This review also highlights trends in compound-specific research, release mechanisms, and commercial applications, including a detailed analysis of patents and case studies across various food matrices. These developments have already been translated into practical applications, such as antimicrobial sachets for meat and essential oil-based pads for fresh produce. Moreover, by promoting the valorization of agro-industrial by-products and the use of biodegradable materials, emission-type active packaging contributes to the principles of the circular economy. This comprehensive overview underscores the potential of natural bioactive compounds in advancing sustainable and functional food packaging technologies.

Active edible packaging is a food packaging made of comestible bioproducts and active compounds that interacts with the food. The bioproducts, usually biopolymers, must be recognized as safe and with characteristics to be consumed by humans—comestible—and not toxic and capable of carrying an active compound, like anti-browning agents, colorants, flavors, nutrients, antimicrobial and/or antioxidant compounds, in order to extend the product shelf-life, reduce contamination and maintain or even enhance the nutritional value.

Cardoon, Cynara cardunculus L., is a perennial plant whose flowers are used as vegetal rennet in cheese making. Cardoon is native from the Mediterranean area and is commonly used in the preparation of salads and soup dishes. Nowadays, cardoon is also being exploited for the production of energy, generating large amount of wastes, mainly leaves. These wastes are rich in bioactive compounds with important health benefits. The aim of this review is to highlight the main properties of cardoon leaves according to the current research and to explore its potential uses in different sectors, namely the food industry. Cardoon leaves are recognized to have potential health benefits. In fact, some studies indicated that cardoon leaves could have diuretic, hepato-protective, choleretic, hypocholesterolemic, anti-carcinogenic, and antibacterial properties. Most of these properties are due to excellent polyphenol profiles, with interesting antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. These findings indicate that cardoon leaves can have new potential uses in different sectors, such as cosmetics and the food industry; in particular, they can be used for the preparation of extracts to incorporate into active food packaging. In the future, these new uses of cardoon leaves will allow for zero waste of this crop.

Fruit by-products have a low economic value and have proven biological activities, such as antioxidant capacity due to the presence of active compounds. The main objective of this study was to obtain and determine the antioxidant capacity, through DPPH radical assay and β-carotene bleaching assay, of three food grade extracts from apple, lemon, and orange industrial by-products. Furthermore, the extracts were characterized by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). LC with diode array detector (LC-DAD) was used for the quantification of the main polyphenols. Lemon extract presented the highest inhibition percentage of DPPH radical (51.7%) and the highest total phenolics content (43.4 mg GAE/g) from the by-products studied. Orange by-product was that with the higher number of polyphenols while lemon extract was that with the highest content of individual phenolics. The by-product obtained from the lemon was that with higher amounts of hydroxycinnamic acids (407 µg/g of by-product), mainly chlorogenic acid (386.7 µg/g), followed by the apple by-product (128.0 µg/g of by-product), which showed higher amounts of rosmarinic and chlorogenic acids. These industrial by-products have great potential as a source of natural antioxidants to be used directly as food additives or to be incorporated in packaging to produce active food packaging.