Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) has experienced a significant resurgence in popularity, and global interest in diversifying its use in various industries, including the food industry, is growing. Therefore, due to their exceptional nutritional value, hemp seeds have recently gained increasing interest as a valuable ingredient for obtaining high-quality foods and dietary supplements. Hemp seeds stand out for their remarkable content of quality proteins, including edestin and albumin, two distinct types of proteins that contribute to exceptional nutritional value. Hemp seeds are also rich in healthy lipids with a high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids, such as linoleic acid (omega-6), alpha-linolenic acid (omega-3), and some vitamins (vitamins E, D, and A). Polyphenols and terpenoids, in particular, present in hemp seeds, provide antimicrobial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. This review examines the scientific literature regarding hemp seeds’ physicochemical and nutritional characteristics. The focus is on those characteristics that allow for their use in the food industry, aiming to transform ordinary food products into functional foods, offering additional benefits for the body’s health. Innovating opportunities to develop healthy, nutritionally superior food products are explored by integrating hemp seeds into food processes, promoting a balanced and sustainable diet.

Functional foods are intensively studied and promoted by various organizations in the field of food and nutrition. They are foods that, by their initial, fortified, enriched, or improved composition, offer health benefits. At global level, there is a great interest in promoting fruit varieties, vegetables, and pseudocereal consumption in order to improve our health. Due to their content in essential compounds such as antioxidants, important amounts of fruits and vegetables should be included in our daily diet. New food matrixes, such as fruit and vegetable juices, have been tested for their ability to deliver probiotic microorganisms and results were promising. Technological progress made possible the use of fruits and vegetables as ideal substrates for probiotics development, due to their content in minerals, vitamins, fibers, and antioxidants. Probiotic products based on vegetables have a continuous development due to the increase in popularity of vegetarianism and the growth of lactose intolerance among the entire world population.

Since its introduction to Burkina Faso, quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) has become a promising crop for diversifying cereal-based diets in a context marked by food insecurity, childhood malnutrition, and micronutrient deficiencies. This study compared five quinoa varieties (Titicaca, Psankalla, Puno, Negra Colana, and Salcedo Inia) cultivated in Burkina Faso, with emphasis on their relevance to human nutrition. Therefore, physicochemical parameters, proximate composition, amino acid profiles, and mineral composition were determined. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were observed among varieties for most parameters. Salcedo Inia exhibited the highest energy value (372.56 kcal/100 g), while Titicaca exhibited the greatest protein content (17.89 g/100 g) and lipid content (5.82 g/100 g). Psankalla and Puno presented favorable essential amino acid profiles, including lysine, supporting their potential use in cereal-based complementary foods. Negra Colana exhibited the highest crude fiber content (9.66 g/100 g) and the highest concentrations of several minerals, including iron, calcium, magnesium, and zinc, suggesting potential relevance for dietary strategies to improve micronutrient intake. The swelling behavior of selected quinoa varieties also suggests their suitability for soft, rehydrated formulations suitable for vulnerable populations. In general, Burkina Faso-cultivated quinoa varieties demonstrated promising nutritional attributes that could support dietary diversification, improve protein quality, and increase mineral intake. To our knowledge, this is the first study to systematically compare the nutritional profiles of five quinoa varieties cultivated under Sahelian agroecological conditions. Beyond its relevance for Burkina Faso, this study provides novel evidence on the expression of genotype-dependent nutritional traits in quinoa outside traditional production regions, supporting climate-resilient crop diversification and the development of quinoa-based complementary foods for vulnerable populations in food-insecure settings.