Coloured (black, purple, blue, red, etc.) cereal grains, rich in anthocyanins, have recently gained a lot of attention in the food industry. Anthocyanins are water-soluble flavonoids, and are responsible for red, violet, and blue colours in fruits, vegetables, and grains. Anthocyanins have demonstrated antioxidant potential in both in vitro and in vivo studies, and the consumption of foods high in anthocyanins has been linked to lower risks of chronic diseases. As such, whole grain functional foods made with coloured grains are promising new products. This paper will review the characteristics of cereal anthocyanins, and assess their prevalence in various commercially relevant crops including wheat, barley, maize, and rice. A brief overview of the antioxidant potential, and current research on the health effects of cereal-based anthocyanins will be provided. Finally, processing of coloured cereals in whole grain products will be briefly discussed. A full understanding of the fate of anthocyanins in whole grain products, and more research targeted towards health outcomes of anthocyanin supplementation to/inclusion in cereal food products are the next logical steps in this research field.

Bigels have been mainly applied in the pharmaceutical sector for the controlled release of drugs or therapeutics. However, these systems, with their intricate structures, hold great promise for wider application in food products. Besides their classical role as carrier and target delivery vehicles for molecules of interest, bigels may also be valuable tools for building complex food structures. In the context of reducing or even eliminating undesirable (but often highly functional) food components, current strategies often critically affect food structure and palatability. The production of solid fat systems that are trans-fat-free and have high levels of unsaturated fatty acids is one of the challenges the food industry currently faces. According to recent studies, bigels can be successfully used as ingredients for total or partial solid fat replacement in complex food matrices. This review aims to critically assess current research on bigels in food and pharmaceutical applications, discuss the role of bigel composition and production parameters on the characteristics of bigels and further expand the use of bigels as solid fat replacers and functional food ingredients. The hydrogel:oleogel ratio, selected gelators, inclusion of surfactants and encapsulation of molecules of interest, and process parameters (e.g., temperature, shear rate) during bigel production play a crucial role in the bigel’s rheological and textural properties, microstructure, release characteristics, biocompatibility, and stability. Besides exploring the role of these parameters in bigel production, future research directions for bigels in a food context are explored.

Purple and blue wheats contain anthocyanins in the outer layers of the wheat kernel, and therefore purple and blue wholemeals can be a source of anthocyanins when developing processed cereal products. However, cereal processing is anticipated to cause significant anthocyanin losses. In this study, the anthocyanin content of crackers and bread made from one purple and three blue wholemeals was measured during processing and after baking. LC-MS/MS was used to confirm the presence of anthocyanins, and to tentatively identify them. Mixing and baking steps significantly decreased the anthocyanin content, whereas resting and fermentation steps did not. Purple and blue wholemeal samples reacted differently, indicating that the starting anthocyanin content, localization and composition may have some impact on anthocyanin retention. Additionally, dough systems with decreased pH were more protective of anthocyanins during intermediate processing steps, as were high-temperature, short-time baking procedures. This research provides insights into the processing steps that cause significant anthocyanin losses, and proposes some modifications to formulation and processing conditions which can further reduce losses.

The COVID-19 pandemic has generated increased interest in potential transmission routes. In food retail settings, transmission from infected customers and workers and customers through surfaces has been deemed plausible. However, limited information exists on the presence and survival of SARS-CoV-2 on surfaces, particularly outside laboratory settings. Therefore, the purpose of this project was to assess the presence of the virus at commonly found surfaces at food retail stores and the potential role that these spaces play in virus transmission.