Ample amounts of by-products are generated from the oil industry. Among them, sunflower oilcakes have the potential to be used for human consumption, thus achieving the concept of sustainability and circular economy. The study assessed the nutritional composition of sunflower seeds, cold-pressed oil and the remaining press-cakes with the aim of its valorization as a food ingredient. Sunflower oil contains principally oleic (19.81%) and linoleic (64.35%) acids, which cannot be synthetized by humans and need to be assimilated through a diet. Sunflower seeds are very nutritive (33.85% proteins and 65.42% lipids and 18 mineral elements). Due to the rich content of lipids, they are principally used as a source of vegetable oil. Compared to seeds, sunflower oilcakes are richer in fibers (31.88% and 12.64% for samples in form of pellets and cake, respectively) and proteins (20.15% and 21.60%), with a balanced amino acids profile. The remaining oil (15.77% and 14.16%) is abundant in unsaturated fatty acids (95.59% and 92.12%). The comparison between the three products showed the presence of valuable components that makes them suitable for healthy diets with an adequate intake of nutrients and other bioactive compounds with benefic effects.

Beebread or ambrosia is a unique product for humans and bees, which is the result of lactic fermentation on pollen in honeycombs. Bee bread is a rich source of nutrients (proteins, vitamins) and polyphenols (such as flavonoids, flavonols, phenolic acids). This study aimed to characterize bee bread in terms of physicochemical properties: pH, free acidity, glucose, fructose, sucrose, raffinose and melesitose content, total phenolic content (TPC), total flavones content (TFC), fatty acids and individual phenolics (gallic acid, protocatechiuc acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, caffeic acid, vanillic acid, chlorogenic acid, p-coumaric acid, rosmarinic acid, myricetin, luteolin, quercetin and kaempferol). The main phenolic compound identified in the bee bread was kaempferol, followed by myricetin and luteolin. The TPC, TFC and extraction yield were optimized in function of ultrasonic amplitude, temperature and time and the suitable conditions for achieving the maximum level were 87.20% amplitude of ultrasonic treatment, 64.70 °C and 23.10 min, respectively for reaching 146.2 mg GAE/L of TPC, 1231.5 mg QE/g of TFC and a 5.72% extraction yield. The most abundant fatty acids were C18:3 (all-cis-9,12,15) octadeca-6,9,15-trienoic acid, followed by C16:1 (9Z)-hexadec-9-enoic acid, C21:0 heneicosanoic acid and C18:2 (all-cis-9,12) (9Z,12Z)-octadeca-9,12-dienoic acid, respectively.

Bee pollen represents an important bee product, which is produced by mixing flower pollens with nectar honey and bee’s salivary substances. It represents an important source of phenolic compounds which can have great importance for importance for prophylaxis of diseases, particularly to prevent cardiovascular and neurodegenerative disorders, those having direct correlation with oxidative damage. The aim of this study was to characterize 24 bee pollen samples in terms of physicochemical parameters, organic acids, total phenolic content, total flavonoid content, individual phenolics compounds, fatty acids, and amino acids from the Nort East region of Romania, which have not been studied until now. The bee pollen can be considered as a high protein source (the mean concentration was 22.31% d.m.) with a high energy value (390.66 kcal/100 g). The total phenolic content ranged between 4.64 and 17.93 mg GAE/g, while the total flavonoid content ranged between 4.90 and 20.45 mg QE/g. The high protein content was observed in Robinia pseudoacacia, the high content of lipids was observed in Robinia pseudoacacia pollen, the high fructose content in Prunus spp. pollen while the high F/G ratio was observed in Pinaceae spp. pollen. The high TPC was observed in Prunus spp. pollen, the high TFC was observed in Robinia pseudoacacia pollen, the high free amino acid content was observed in Pinaceae spp. pollen, and the high content of PUFA was reported in Taraxacum spp. pollen. A total of 16 amino acids (eight essential and eight non-essential amino acids) were quantified in the bee pollen samples analyzed. The total content of the amino acids determined for the bee pollen samples varied between 11.31 µg/mg and 45.99 µg/mg. Our results can indicate that the bee pollen is a rich source of protein, fatty acids, amino acids and bioactive compounds.

The paper analyzes the possibility of replacing the polyethylene packaging from food products with biodegradable packaging obtained from biopolymers. The proposed packaging materials were obtained from polysaccharides (alginate, agar), glycerol as plasticizer. To improve the properties necessary for the coating materials, two groups of membranes were made, one with ascorbic acid (AA, 0.1–0.45 g) in 150 mL filmogenic solution and the other with calcium chloride (CaCl₂, 0.02–0.1 g) in 150 mL filmogenic solution. The membranes were analyzed for mechanical properties, light transmission, transparency and barrier properties (water vapor, oxygen, or fatty substances). The results demonstrated that the addition of AA (0.1 g), increases tensile strength, transparency, oxygen and water barrier properties. On the other hand, the addition of calcium chloride (0.08 g) increased the hardness, tensile strength and opacity of the membranes. Moreover, it ensured a uniform distribution of the mixture components. The uniformization of the mixture components in the presence of AA and CACl₂ was observed by SEM and roughness analysis. Hydrogen bonding interactions between the biopolymers and the additives used were highlighted by FTIR analysis. All membranes have shown very good UV absorption. The results suggest that agar/alginate/glycerol membranes with AA and CaCl₂ have the potential to be used in an active food packaging system.

Amaranth is an underutilized pseudocereal that can be used to supplement wheat flour (WF) in order to improve the nutritional quality of bread. Bread digestibility is impacted by particle size which produces different nutritional properties. This research aims to evaluate the baking characteristics of optimal wheat–amaranth composite flour for each studied amaranth flour (AF) particle size at doses previously established based on an optimization process and to characterize from a physical, textural, nutritional, and sensorial point of view the obtained bread. The results revealed that the optimal wheat–amaranth composite flour with medium and small particle size, respectively showed a slightly lower α-amylase activity, while dough development time was significantly higher compared to the WF. A significant (p < 0.05) decrease was observed in the elasticity, deformation energy, and dynamic rheological parameters of the optimal composite dough for all the particle sizes, whereas fermentation parameters showed higher values compared to the control, indicating the ability of the gluten structure in large, medium, and small particle sizes of AF to hold the gas and to expand without collapsing. The physical, textural, and especially nutritional characteristics of the optimal WF-AF bread were enhanced. The sensory evaluation results revealed high scores (8.70) for the acceptability of optimal bread with a medium particle size as compared to wheat bread (8.25). The protein and ash content of the optimal breads with large, medium, and small AF particle sizes, respectively, increased significantly, from 8.92 to 10.58%, and 0.82 to 0.99%, respectively, relative to the wheat flour bread (8.35% and 0.72%, respectively). The mineral content was up to two times higher in the optimal breads compared to wheat flour bread. The findings generated from this study are helpful in bakery industry for designing products with enhanced nutritional properties and for introducing new products to the market.

Vinegar is a fermented food with a diversity of uses seasoning, salad dressing and flavouring for foods. Since ancient times it is considered a remedy for health and today there are different types of vinegar on the market, and many others are under development. Determination of the physicochemical characteristics of the new types of vinegar is necessary in order to improve them. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to compare the physicochemical characteristics of vinegar obtained from banana peels (with or without boiling peels) at different ages, with those of commercial vinegars. The vinegar from banana peels was obtained and aged in our laboratory, while the commercial vinegars were purchased from a local market. The physicochemical characteristics of all the samples were investigated before and after gastric and intestinal digestion. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was used to determine the mineral content of the vinegars. Additionally, statistical analysis of the results was performed by applying a one-way analysis of variance. Results showed that vinegar obtained from banana peels is clearer and total dry extract values are lower than those of commercial vinegars. Banana peel vinegars have higher antioxidant activity and total polyphenol content similar to the commercial balsamic vinegars. This study advances the knowledge in the field of vinegar production by using raw agricultural by-products.