Sustainable Processing Innovations for Foods

Dramatic growth of the population is near to reach 10 billion world inhabitants, which implies serious and important challenges to face in a guaranteed way and megaefforts to ensure universal access to health care, food, water, sanitation, energy, education and housing. In the case of foods, innovations in food processing techniques can significantly contribute to meeting the needs of the future world population with respect to quality, quantity and sustainability of their food intake.

This research topic will highlight the current knowledge regarding the most recent innovations, emerging technologies and strategies based on food design on a sustainable level. Especially welcome are Original Research/Review articles and Perspectives focused on the modernization of food industries, emerging technologies, sensor technology, cold plasma technology, sustainable packaging and refrigeration climate control, non-thermal pasteurisation, sterilisation, nano- and micro technology, healthy product composition, innovative processes/bioprocesses for utilization of by-products, development of novel preservation alternatives, extending the shelf life of fresh products, alternative processes requiring less energy or water, plant-based meat alternatives and information and knowledge transfer.

For each technology, it is important to describe the direct impact (reduced losses, energy and water use) as well as the indirect impact (food losses, suboptimal utilisation and unnecessary quality decay within the supply chain), as well as their contribution to the areas of improvement of the world food processing industries (new and better food products, resource efficient manufacturing processes, integrated and transparent supply chains and enhanced innovation capacity) is encouraged.

Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.