High hydrostatic pressure induced changes on palm stearin emulsions

Emulsification and stabilisation technologies used for the inclusion of lipophilic functional ingredients in food systems

Food industry is increasingly using functional ingredients to improve the food product quality. Lipid-containing functional ingredients are important sources of nutrients. This review examines the current state of emulsification and stabilisation technologies for incorporating lipophilic functional ingredients into food systems. Lipophilic functional ingredients, such as omega-3 fatty acids, carotenoids, and fat-soluble vitamins, offer numerous health benefits but present challenges due to their limited solubility in water-based food matrices. Emulsification techniques enable the dispersion of these ingredients in aqueous environments, facilitating their inclusion in a variety of food products. This review highlights recent advances in food emulsion formulation, emulsification methods and stabilisation techniques which, together, improve the stability and bioavailability of lipophilic compounds. The role of various emulsifiers, stabilizers, and encapsulation materials in enhancing the functionality of these ingredients is also explored. Furthermore, the review discusses different stabilisation techniques which can yield in emulsion in a solid or liquid state. By providing a comprehensive overview of current technologies, this review aims to guide future research and application in the development of functional foods enriched with lipophilic ingredients.

NMR Relaxometry and magnetic resonance imaging as tools to determine the emulsifying characteristics of quince seed powder in emulsions and hydrogels

Quince seed powder (QSP) is known to exhibit emulsification properties and could be used as a natural emulsifier in colloidal food systems. In this study, emulsion-based alginate hydrogels were formulated using QSP and xanthan gum (XG) as stabilizers. The objective of the study was to show the emulsifying power of QSP in emulsions and their hydrogels using Time Domain (TD) NMR Relaxometry and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). Rheology and mean particle size measurements for emulsions and scanning electron microscope (SEM) experiments for hydrogels were further conducted as complementary methods. QSP containing emulsions were found to have longer T₂ relaxation times than XG samples (p < 0.05). Addition of either QSP or XG produced a more pseudoplastic flow behavior (p < 0.05) on the emulsions. Relaxation times were also obtained by MR images through T₂ maps. Relaxation decay curves showed the presence of two proton compartments in hydrogels; protons associated with the polymer matrix and protons interacting with the oil phase. The contribution of the first proton pools was the largest in QSP hydrogels confirmed by the lowest standard deviation in the T₂ maps. This behavior was explained by the emulsification ability of QSP. Results showed that NMR Relaxometry and MR images could be used to understand the emulsifying nature of QSP and many other hydrocolloids.