Functional Foods and
Nutraceuticals/Alimentos funcionales:
● Lydia J.R. Lawless, Renee T. Threlfall, Luke
R. Howard and Jean-François Meullenet,
“Sensory, Compositional, and Color Properties of Nutraceutical-Rich Juice
Blends”. American Journal of Enology and
Viticulture, Vol. 63 No. 4 (2012) 529-537.
Abstract
Phytochemical-rich fruits may have health-related
properties, which make juices of these fruits prime candidates for the
nutraceutical market. Understanding consumer acceptance and compositional,
color, and descriptive sensory changes during storage is crucial to the success
of nutraceutical-rich juices. Juices (blackberry, blueberry, and Concord grape)
were blended according to the ABCD mixture design (three primary juices, three
binary blends, and four tertiary blends). Prior to storage, a trained descriptive
panel (n = 8) determined that Concord-containing blends were generally sweeter,
less bitter, less astringent, and less sour than blackberry- or
blueberry-containing blends. When relating compositional, color, and
descriptive sensory characteristics, sweetness was inversely correlated to
total phenolics (r = −0.88), total anthocyanins (r = −0.75), color density (r =
−0.84), and astringency (r = −0.92) and positively correlated with soluble
solids (r = 0.92) and polymeric color (r = 0.78). Consumers (n = 108) evaluated
overall liking on a 9-point verbal hedonic scale. Average liking scores were
high for 100% Concord juice (7.79), moderate for 100% blueberry juice (5.47),
and low for 100% blackberry juice (2.95). Consumer acceptance was driven by
soluble solids, total anthocyanins, purple color, red color, astringency,
sweetness, and grape flavor. Compositional, color, and descriptive sensory
changes were tracked during 200 days storage at 2°C and 21°C. Prior to storage,
100% blueberry juice had the highest total anthocyanins (67 mg/100 mL), 100%
blackberry juice had the highest total phenolics (249 mg/100 mL), and 100%
Concord juice had the highest polymeric color (23%). During storage, polymeric
color increased as total anthocyanins decreased at 2°C and 21°C. Blending
juices balanced nutraceutical enhancement and maintenance of consumer
acceptance.
● Alessandro Bonanno,
“Functional foods as differentiated products: the Italian yogurt market”. European Revue of Agricutural Economics,
Vol. 40 No. 1 (2013) 45-71.
Abstract
In spite of the growing consumers' interest for
functional foods, the knowledge regarding the demand for these products and
their profitability is limited. Adapting the LA/AIDS (Linear
Approximated–Almost Ideal Demand System) model by means of Pinkse, Slade and
Brett's distance metric method (2002), this article studies demand,
substitution pattern, and profitability of conventional and functional
alternatives inside the yogurt category in Italy. Results indicate that, in the
yogurt market, functional alternatives' demand is often less elastic than that
of their conventional counterparts, that brand loyalty plays a key role, and that
the profitability of the functional alternatives is, on average, larger than
that of conventional ones.
● Ellen H. M. Moors,
“Functional foods: regulation and innovations in the EU”. Innovation, Vol. 25 No 4 (2012) 424-440.
Abstract
Worldwide consumers are becoming more interested in
the relation between food and health. In order to harmonize regulation on foods
throughout the EU, the Regulation EC1924/2006 on nutrition and health claims
came into force, as a first specific set of EU legal rules dealing with
nutrition and health claims. A Union List of EU-wide approved claims is now
being developed that creates a level playing-field on which food operators can
innovate, backed by legal certainty to ultimately bring benefits to the
consumer. This paper assesses the new Regulation and its impact on the
functional food innovation process, functional foods being conventional food
products with added substances to promote health. Food innovation is perceived
as a collective effort of a variety of actors within the context of a network
of institutions, whose activities and interactions initiate, import and diffuse
new innovations. Both desk research and semi-structured interviews with actors
in the Dutch functional food value chain have been performed to explore the
impact of the new Regulation. It seems that the new regulatory regime may not
only be restrictive but also selective for future functional food innovative
activities.
● Collin L. Gyles, Irene Lenoir-Wijnkoop y Jared
G. Carlberg, “Health economics and nutrition: a review of
published evidence”. Nutrition Reviews,
Vol. 70 nº 12 (2012) 693–708.
Abstract
The relationship between nutrition and health-economic
outcomes is important at both the individual and the societal level. While
personal nutritional choices affect an individual's health condition, thus
influencing productivity and economic contribution to society, nutrition
interventions carried out by the state also have the potential to affect
economic output in significant ways. This review summarizes studies of
nutrition interventions in which health-related economic implications of the
intervention have been addressed. Results of the search strategy have been
categorized into three areas: economic studies of micronutrient deficiencies
and malnutrition; economic studies of dietary improvements; and economic
studies of functional foods. The findings show that a significant number of
studies have calculated the health-economic impacts of nutrition interventions,
but approaches and methodologies are sometimes ad hoc in nature and vary widely
in quality. Development of an encompassing economic framework to evaluate costs
and benefits from such interventions is a potentially fruitful area for future
research.
◊ Electronic resources
● S.A. El Sohaimy, “Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals-Modern Approach
to Food Science”. World Applied Sciences
Journal, Vol. 20 No. 5 (2012) 691-708: http://www.idosi.org/wasj/wasj20(5)12/12.pdf (last accessed on 8 January 2013).