Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods production

The health and wellness of human beings is largely dictated by the consumption of nutritious foods. Food bioactive compounds are natural components that have biological activity and in some instances provide nutritional value. They play an important role in the community health and safety due to confirmed roles in human growth and development, besides reducing disease risks. Consumption of biologically active ingredients in fruits and vegetables has been linked to helping combat diseases like cancer, CVDs, obesity and GI tract disorders. There has been much research activity recently on the types of food items and other natural products (mainly of plant origin) and their possibility of being sources of therapeutic and prophylactic agents. The types of foods in this regard are those functional foods that, when consumed regularly and appropriately, can result in beneficial health effects beyond their natural properties Manufacturers often cannot simply add a nutraceutical to a food when formulating functional foods that have acceptable sensory appeal as well as the desired health benefits. The appropriate application of encapsulation for stabilizing nutraceuticals enables their effective delivery through food. The careful design of the delivery system helps protect sensitive nutraceuticals from the environment and processing stresses encountered during food manufacture, and prevents undesirable interactions of the nutraceutical with components in the food matrix.The increased interest for these products could benefit both consumers and the industry, through contributions to improve consumers’ quality of life, adding value to industrial residues and generating more patents in these sectors.