Qualitative valorization of primary productions for the production of food or nutraceuticals

WP1 starts from the identification and characterization of plant raw materials of possible nutritional and nutraceutical interest. From the selection of the best materials, innovative food products will be developed and, thanks to the use of an NMR spectroscopy platform in “high throughput” mode, the metabolic profile of bioactive molecules present in food and plant matrices will be characterized for their potential use in the nutraceutical sector. The results thus obtained will have great relevance for future applications in the industrial field.

WP1 is distinguished in four consequential macroactivities:

Primary production quality

Evaluation of the nutritional/benefit properties of consumer food products (legumes and cereals) and vegetable matrices (oilseeds and microalgae) characterized by compounds with high added value.

Development of ingredients with nutraceutical action

Development of fermented from vegetable matrices for the valorization of the production waste of cereals and legumes and for the obtainment of ingredients with nutritional and health properties of interest.

Development of functionalized processed products

Creation of new functional foods, biofortified or added with probiotics and prebiotics to prevent the onset of diseases and improve lifestyle.

Functional analysis of ingredients/foods

Evaluation of the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antilipemizing properties of some of the ingredients/foods developed in the project in cellular systems and/or murine.

Expected results in WP1

Identification of plant materials for the production of food/ingredients (phytocomplexes) with a better nutritional/nutraceutical profile;
Implementation of ingredients production processes (e.g. extraction, biotransformation) also in terms of environmental impact;
Process innovation for the design of nutritionally improved foods;
Validation of bioactivities of ingredients and processed products.

Impacts of WP1

Development of innovative products, using plant materials with better nutritional/beneficial properties and/or transformation processes (fermentations);
Development of industrial processes and technologies to obtain innovative and nutritionally balanced food products for different categories of consumers;
Marketing of products for weak consumer categories.