This study focuses on evaluating the efficiency of acid-tolerant Lacticaseibacillus paracasei bacteria encapsulated in an alginate-based gel matrix during repeated sourdough fermentation cycles, as well as their preservation during storage and throughout baking at high temperature. A double-coating procedure was applied, involving the encapsulation of bacterial cells in calcium alginate, which was further coated with chitosan. The encapsulation efficiency (EE) did not show significant difference between alginate and alginate–chitosan (97.97 and 96.71%, respectively). The higher number of L. paracasei bacteria was preserved in double-coated microbeads, with survivability rates of 89.51% and 96.90% in wet and dried microbeads, respectively. Encapsulated bacteria demonstrated effective fermentation ability, while double gel-coated cells exhibited slower acidification during sourdough fermentation, maintaining higher efficiency in the second fermentation cycle. The addition of freeze-dried, alginate-based gel-encapsulated bacteria (2–4%, w/w flour) significantly (p < 0.05) improved bread quality and extended its shelf life. A double-layer coating (alginate–chitosan) can be introduced as an innovative strategy for regulating the release of lactic acid bacteria and optimizing fermentation processes. Powdered alginate or alginate–chitosan gel-based L. paracasei microcapsules, at appropriate concentrations, can be used in the production of baked goods with acceptable quality and sensory properties, achieving a lactic acid bacteria count of approximately 10⁶ CFU/g in the crumb, thereby meeting the standard criteria for probiotic bakery products.

The degradation of the complex structure of lignocellulosic biomass is important for its further biorefinery to value-added bioproducts. The use of effective fungal species for the optimised degradation of biomass can promote the effectiveness of the biorefinery of such raw material. In this study, the optimisation of processing parameters (temperature, time, and s/w ratio) for cellulase activity and reducing sugar (RS) production through the hydrolysis of sugar beet pulp (SBP) by edible filamentous fungi of Aspergillus, Fusarium, Botrytis, Penicillium, Rhizopus, and Verticillium spp. was performed. The production of RS was analysed at various solid/water (s/w) ratios (1:10–1:20), different incubation temperatures (20–35 °C), and processing times (60–168 h). The Aspergillus niger CCF 3264 and Penicillium oxalicum CCF 3438 strains showed the most effective carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) degrading activity and also sugar recovery (15.9–44.8%) from SBP biomass in the one-factor experiments. Mathematical data evaluation indicated that the highest RS concentration (39.15 g/100 g d.w.) and cellulolytic activity (6.67 U/g d.w.) could be achieved using A. niger CCF 3264 for the degradation of SBP at 26 °C temperature with 136 h of processing time and a 1:15 solid/water ratio. This study demonstrates the potential of fungal degradation to be used for SBP biorefining.

With the world’s population continuing to grow, ensuring sustainable protein sources for everyone is becoming increasingly challenging. Despite meat being considered unsustainable, people find it challenging to abstain from consuming it. However, one solution to this dilemma could be the incorporation of mealworms into conventional meat products, i.e., sausages. The incorporation of mealworms into sausage formulations appears to shift the fatty acid profile towards higher levels of monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), particularly omega-3s, potentially enhancing the nutritional value and offering health benefits. Therefore, our study aimed to improve the nutritional value and safety parameters of traditional sausages by enriching them with the flour of mealworm larvae. For this purpose, the larvae were reared on a sustainable substrate with brewery by-products, brewer’s yeast, and carrots. They were used frozen and freeze-dried in sausage recipes, replacing pork in different proportions. The analysis of the product’s chemical safety parameters (biogenic amines, nitrates and nitrites, volatile fatty acids (FA), and peroxide) and nutritional value (including collagen, cholesterol, amino acids, FA, and hydroxyproline) was carried out in an accredited laboratory. The results of our study have demonstrated that the incorporation of mealworms into sausages, particularly through freeze-drying, increased fat content and enhanced the profile of FA, including omega-3s while reducing protein and cholesterol levels, and altering collagen content, suggesting improved nutritional value and potential health benefits without compromising the safety of the product. Therefore, we are highlighting that the addition of mealworms influences the quality of amino acids positively and maintains biogenic amine levels within safe limits, alongside a negligible impact on nitrates and nitrites and a reduction in peroxide values. These findings indicate an overall improvement in sausage quality and safety without compromising safety.

In this study, the effect of solid-state fermentation (SSF) with Lactobacillus sakei MI401 and Pediococcus acidilactici PA-2 strains on functional properties of extruded (130 °C; 25 rpm) corn-milling by-products (CMB) and their albumin, globulin, and prolamin fractions was evaluated in order to produce stabilized and functionalized food/feed stock. Extrusion resulted in a considerable reduction of microbial contamination of CMB by five log cycles, increased damaged starch, water-absorption capacity, and lowered protein and fat contents by 12.4% and 37%, respectively. The application of SSF for the extruded CMB have been shown to improve the water absorption, foaming, and emulsifying capacity of albumins and globulins and also increased the digestibility and free radical scavenging activity of prolamins. The essential amino acid content (EAA) in CMB and antioxidant activity of prolamins was lowered after extrusion but significantly increased after SSF. The combination of the abovementioned treatments can be confirmed as a prospective functionalization of CMB, capable of potentially enhancing its safety and improving nutritional, biochemical, and technological properties of proteins.

The rising global demand for animal-based food has an increasingly detrimental ecological impact, exacerbated by significant food waste (approximately one-third of all food). This research aimed to analyze the possibility of changing the usually balanced feed with sustainable alternatives that remain as a by-product of the production of farms, grain processing, and breweries, thus promoting the sustainability of agriculture. The mealworm larvae were reared on different substrates: (1) agar-agar gels, wheat bran, and brewer’s yeast, (2) carrots, wheat bran, and brewer’s yeast, (3) sprouted potatoes, wheat bran, and brewer’s yeast, and (4) carrots, brewers’ spent grain and brewer’s yeast. For analysis, the frozen larvae were lyophilized and tested for chemical safety in three accredited laboratories. The results have shown that all tested samples had lower levels of pesticides than the detection limit. In scientific literature, we didn’t find studies on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). In our study, we found PAH in the substrate and these toxins, as our study shows, can also enter the larvae, but no significant accumulation was observed (sum of benzo(a)pyrene, benz(a)anthracene, benzo(b)fluoranthene and chrysene was 0.0007 mg/kg). Furthermore, the total content of PAH, benzo(a)pyrene and histamine did not exceed recommended levels. We have noticed that the highest concentration of heavy metals (e.g., chromium—1.45 ± 0.02) was found in the sample with the brewer’s by-products. While numerous studies utilize plant-derived by-products, the accumulation of glycoalkaloids has not been explored. Among the all glycoalkaloids (tomatidin, tomatine, α-solanine, α-chaconine and solanidin), amounts of α-solanine and α-chaconine were the highest, detected in the sample with sprouted potatoes (175.12 ± 0.21 and 139.32 ± 0.32 mg/kg, respectively). The amount of total putrescine, tyramine, spermine, and spermidine in mealworm larvae was statistically higher compared to the amount detected in the substrate, and histamine level-on the contrary, was statistically significantly lower compared to the amount detected in the substrate. Considering the amount of toxic substances found in the substrate from the by-products, we can assume that mealworms did not accumulate high levels of toxins, which would violate regulations.

This study investigates the use of fungal strains as an eco-friendly and cost-effective approach to enhance the protein content of sugarbeet pulp (SBP) via semi-solid fermentation (SmF). The effects of ultrasonication (US) and hydrothermal (HT) pretreatments, combined with SmF, were evaluated with respect to the nutritional and technological characteristics of the resulting SBP fungal biomass. Fermentation using filamentous fungi, such as Aspergillus nidulans CCF2912, Botrytis cinerea CCF2361, and Rhizopus arrhizus CCF1502, increased the protein content of SBP fungal biomass from 53.7 to 93.82–134.11 mg/g d.w. and improved the essential amino acid (EAA) ratio from 0.81 to 1.96. Nucleic acid (NA) content in the end product was decreased by 20.3–31.5% following additional sterilisation at 90 °C for 30 min, while mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids increased from 2.36 to 4.93% and from 5.11 to 10.16% of total fatty acids, respectively. Tryptic digestion of SBP fungal biomass proteins allowed in silico prediction of peptides (up to 2 kDa) with potential DPPH, hydroxyl, and ABTS^•+ radical scavenging activities. Among the tested fungi, R. arrhizus CCF1502 grown on US-treated SBP substrate showed the highest protein biomass yield and overall nutritional quality. These findings demonstrate that integrating thermal pretreatment with SmF provides a sustainable and efficient strategy to enhance the protein yield and nutritional value of SBP, supporting its potential application as a functional ingredient in food and feed applications.