The scientific community has explored new packaging materials owing to environmental challenges and pollution from plastic waste. Bacterial cellulose (BC), produced by bacteria like Gluconacetobacter xylinus, shows high potential for food preservation owing to its exceptional mechanical strength, high crystallinity, and effective barrier properties against gases and moisture, making it a promising alternative to conventional plastics. This review highlights recent advances in BC production, particularly agro-industrial residues, which reduce costs and enhance environmental sustainability. Incorporating antimicrobial agents into BC matrices has also led to active packaging solutions that extend food shelf-life and improve safety. A bibliometric analysis reveals a significant increase in research on BC over the last decade, reflecting growing global interest. Key research themes include the development of BC-based composites and the exploration of their antimicrobial properties. Critical areas for future research include improving BC production’s scalability and economic viability and the integration of BC with other biopolymers. These developments emphasize BC’s potential as a sustainable packaging material and its role in the circular economy through waste valorization.

The scientific community has explored new packaging materials due to environmental challenges and pollution from plastic waste. Bacterial cellulose (BC), produced by bacteria like Gluconaceto-bacter xylinus, shows high potential for food preservation due to its exceptional mechanical strength, high crystallinity, and effective barrier properties against gases and moisture, making it a promising alternative to conventional plastics. This review highlights recent advances in BC production, particularly agro-industrial residues, which reduce costs and enhance environmental sustainability. Incorporating antimicrobial agents into BC matrices has also led to active packaging solutions that extend food shelf life and improve safety. A bibliometric analysis reveals a significant increase in research on BC over the last decade, reflecting growing global interest. Key research themes include the development of BC-based composites and the exploration of their antimicrobial properties. Critical areas for future research include improving BC production's scalability and economic via-bility and its integration with other biopolymers. These developments emphasize BC's potential as a sustainable packaging material and its role in the circular economy through waste valorization.

Probiotics and prebiotics in dairy products have gained increasing attention due to their potential health benefits and functional properties. Probiotics are beneficial microorganisms that help maintain intestinal microbiota balance, while prebiotics are non-digestible compounds that stimulate the growth of beneficial gut bacteria. Their incorporation into dairy foods has been associated with improved digestive health, nutrient absorption, and product functionality. However, challenges related to microbial survival during processing and storage, interactions with the dairy matrix, and strain-specific limitations remain significant. This review presents a bibliometric analysis of recent scientific advances involving probiotics and prebiotics in dairy products. The bibliometric analysis revealed a marked increase in publications over the last decade, with research concentrated on gut microbiota modulation, functional dairy foods, fermentation technologies, and health-promoting effects. The results also indicate the relevance of bacterial groups such as lactic acid bacilli and Bifidobacterium, as well as the growing interest in synbiotics and bioactive compounds. Additionally, emerging technologies, including microencapsulation, ohmic heating, and ultrasound, are discussed as promising strategies to improve probiotic stability, functionality, and industrial application in dairy systems. Overall, the findings highlight that the successful development of probiotic and prebiotic dairy products depends on the integration of strain selection, matrix compatibility, and emerging technologies to ensure stability, functionality, and industrial applicability.

The valorization of agro-industrial residues represents a strategic approach to advancing sustainability and circular bioeconomy principles in the food sector. Although bacterial cellulose (BC) production from waste substrates has been widely explored, limited attention has been given to the role of nitrogen source modulation in complex fermentation systems. This study evaluated passion fruit peel hydrolysate (PFPH), a cellulose- and hemicellulose-rich by-product, as an alternative carbon source for BC production using a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY) under static conditions. Acid hydrolysis and detoxification were performed to obtain fermentable sugars while minimizing inhibitory compounds. Different nitrogen sources and purification strategies were comparatively assessed. The highest purified BC yield (81 g L⁻¹ of culture medium) was obtained using ammonium sulfate, whereas sodium nitrate promoted greater impurity removal (77.51% mass reduction). Structural and chemical analyses (FTIR, XPS, and XRD) confirmed effective delignification, enhanced surface purity, and increased crystallinity. SEM revealed a homogeneous nanofibrillar network, and thermogravimetric analysis indicated thermal stability up to approximately 300 °C. Soil burial assays showed 26% mass loss after 42 days, demonstrating controlled biodegradation consistent with food packaging requirements. Overall, PFPH proved to be an efficient and sustainable substrate for BC biosynthesis. The modulation of nitrogen source significantly influenced both production yield and structural properties, highlighting the potential of this system for developing environmentally responsible biopolymer materials for food packaging applications.