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Background The biodeterioration of food commodities by microbial pathogens remains a major public health concern. Worldwide, investigations have been carried out to develop harmless natural food preservatives based on essential oils (EOs) to protect food commodities, and advances have been made to meet users’ acceptance as a substitute for synthetic preservatives. Scope and approach In recent years, antimicrobial and antioxidant potential of the EOs from Thymus species have been documented with increasing demands from legislation changes, adaptation to the consumer trends, search for alternatives to solve rising food microbial pathogen resistance, and substitution of synthetic preservatives associated with adverse health effects. Hence, the present review paper emphasizes on the antimicrobial and antioxidant applications of EOs from different species of the genus Thymus and discloses the gaps where investigations are required. In addition, progress in the using Thymus EOs (TEOs) based nanoemulsions in food preservation, and their challenges in the application in food systems have also been discussed. Key findings and conclusions TEOs are rich in pharmacologically active constituents that confirm their industrial and health applications. In addition, TEOs and their nanoemulsions not only provide themselves to exploit in the food industry, but are also put under GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) category, and have shown potential inhibitory activity against a broad range of pathogens in food commodities. Thus, TEOs can be a source for the development of natural preservatives that meet the needs of the food industry to satisfy both its requirements and those of the consumers. However, despite the potential for EOs, more studies are required to assess their probable side effects and safety levels before considering their deployment for food purposes.

Essential oils, extracts and chemical components from aromatic plants are widely used as flavors and fragrances by the food and cosmetics industries because they act highly effective against plant pathogens and pests. According to recent research studies, some botanicals derived from higher plants are efficient insecticides against particular pests, and fungicidal against necrotrophic and biotrophic plant pathogens, in addition to their use in food production. Towards substituting synthetic insecticides/fungicides with natural substitutes, which do not carry negative health effects, the essential oils, extracts and chemical components of Curcuma species have been examined against various plant pathogens and insect pests that harm food crops. The present review discusses the efficacy of essential oils, extracts and few main components derived from a wide range of Curcuma plants against a wide variety of pests and pathogens of food crops. In addition, their mechanism of action against insects and plant pathogens as well as their potential impact on crops (i.e. the allelopathic nature) are discussed. Finally, the commercialization of Curcuma-based pesticides is reviewed and challenges and knowledge gaps are highlighted.

Bioactive peptides are biomolecules derived from proteins. They contain anywhere from 2 to 20 amino acids and have different bioactivities. For example, they have antihypertensive activity, antioxidant activity, antimicrobial activity, etc. However, bioactive peptides are encrypted and inactive in the parental protein, so it is necessary to release them to show their bioactivity. For this, there are different methods, where biotechnological methods are highly favorable, highlighting enzymatic hydrolysis and microbial fermentation. The choice of the method to be used depends on different factors, which is why it is essential to know about the process, its principle, and its advantages and disadvantages. The process of peptide release is critical to generate various peptide sequences, which will produce different biological effects in the hydrolysate. This review focuses on providing extensive information on the enzymatic method and microbial fermentation to facilitate selecting the method that provides the most benefits.

Biopesticide production has become a topic of intense research because of the application and use of this kind of bioactive agents to replace some traditional pesticides that are synthesized chemically, which are applied to food commodities. Worldwide, the market of biopesticides grows annually at a rate of 45% in North America, 25% in Europe and Oceania, 15% in Latin and South American countries, and 7% in Asia. Trends in the modern agriculture reflect an increment of the use of fungal and bacterial biopesticides for which the design of efficient bioprocesses and strategies to improve the productivity and stability of these bioactive agents is a necessity. In this chapter, biological control is described in detail, with particular focus on the significant advances in the production of biopesticides. Also, biocontrol is focused as an alternative to some synthetic chemical treatments that cause environmental, human health, and food quality risks. Recent data about the state of the art of production of biopesticides by solid-state bioprocessing of agroindustrial wastes is discussed, and finally we describe some strategies for high-density bio-inoculant cultivation, describing the influence of water stress as one the best conditions for the production of fungal spores, which is an inexpensive biotechnologic option for modern agriculture in developing countries.

Humanity has been used microbial biomass for food production and now; for biofuels, drugs, and other useful compounds. Different microorganisms are employed in the production of biomass ranging from bacteria, yeast, fungi, and algae which are used to produce food, bioactive compounds, enzymes, hydrolysates, among others. Due to the accelerated population growth in the world and the need to meet its nutritional requirements, the search for alternatives that help to solve this social problem is one of the most pressing tasks.

Undoubtedly, the food industry is undergoing a dynamic process of transformation in its continual development in order to meet the requirements and solve the great problems represented by a constantly growing global population and food claimant in both quantity and quality. In this sense, it is necessary to evaluate the technological trends and advances that will change the landscape of the food processing industry, highlighting the latest requirements for equipment functionality. In particular, it is crucial to evaluate the influence of sustainable green biotechnology-based technologies to consolidate the food industry of the future, today, and it must be done by analyzing the mega-consumption trends that shape the future of industry, which range from local sourcing to on-the-go food, to an increase in organic foods and clean labels (understanding ingredients on food labels). While these things may seem alien to food manufacturing, they have a considerable influence on the way products are manufactured. This paper reviews in detail the conditions of the food industry, and particularly analyzes the application of emerging technologies in food preservation, extraction of bioactive compounds, bioengineering tools and other bio-based strategies for the development of the food industry., Graphical Abstract

Macrofungi, mushrooms or higher fungi have been employed for medicinal and food purposes for decades, nevertheless, also represent, a novel and fruitful source of biologically relevant compounds, that could serve as health enhancers in diverse human illness conditions; specially, mushrooms, are considered a relevant source of the distictive molecule – ergothioneine, an excellent supply of important antioxidant, which boosts human health and shows potential as a preservative in food, promoting their utilization as functional foods, in this context, the present review overviews and complies current knowledge and trends of nutrients as well as bioactive mushroom components including the potential of Huitlacoche and ergothioneine, and the possible health benefits of these biological products and their activities have been explored which enhances the utilization of mushrooms.

International audience; Due to great interest on producing bioactive compounds for functional foods and biopharmaceuticals, it is important to explore the microbial degradation of potential sources of target biomolecules. Gallotannins are polyphenols present in nature, an example of them is tannic acid which is susceptible to enzymatic hydrolysis. This hydrolysis is performed by tannase or tannin acyl hydrolase, releasing in this way, biomolecules with high-added value. In the present study, chemical profiles obtained after fungal degradation of tannic acid under two bioprocesses (submerged fermentation (SmF) and solid state fermentation (SSF)) were determined. In both fermentation systems (SmF and SSF), Aspergillus niger GH1 strain and tannic acid as a sole carbon source and inducer were used (the presence of tannic acid promotes production of enzyme tannase). In case of SSF, polyurethane foam (PUF) was used like as support of fermentation; culture medium only was used in case of submerged fermentation. Fermentation processes were monitored during 72 h; samples were taken kinetically every 8 h; and all extracts obtained were partially purified to obtain polyphenolic fraction and then were analyzed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Molecules like gallic acid and n-galloyl glucose were identified as intermediates in degradation of tannic acid; during SSF was identified ellagic acid production. The results obtained in this study will contribute to biotechnological production of ellagic acid.

Modern agriculture uses nanobiotechnology development as one of the most valuable tools. Using biomolecules in nanotechnology provides new agrochemical nanostructured formulations with different action mechanisms to increase crop productivity and improve their protection decreasing chemical pesticide use. Sustainability and safety of agriculturally cultivated crops are achieved by application of nanoformulations used for control of plant disease related with microorganisms, insects and environmental factors. Nanostructures are also applied for controlled release of nutrients and growth regulators. Safety of nanomaterials use and their environmental impacts are the important factors to acceptance of these new technologies by consumer and agricultural companies.

Indiscriminate use of antibiotics for the control of pathogenic bacteria has increased their resistance to antibiotics. Multidrug-resistant bacteria are an increasing problem in the recent years and pose serious therapeutic difficulties because of their higher level of resistance. An alternative to this serious problem is to use essential oils of diverse plants for bacterial control. Most of the studies have focused on in vitro testing of the antimicrobial property of these oils and even have compared the use of these oils against commercial antibiotics. In this chapter, essential oils are defined, as well as other related aspects such as sources of essential oils, antimicrobial activity of each essential oil, and their applications as a natural alternative are also discussed.

The technology of genetically modified foods (also called GM foods) allows selection of an specific genetic trait from one organism and introduces it in the genetic code of the food source through genetic engineering techniques. This has made possible to develop food crops with specific beneficial traits and elimination of undesirable traits in others. In spite of the great agricultural advantages of transgenic crops these do not have acceptance in some countries because: a) the suspicious of consumer as result of allergic reactions observed with some transgenic crops, b) the lack of worldwide regulations to these crops, and c) the negative side effects to environment by the massive farming of transgenic crops, for example loss of genetic diversity, creation of higher adapting weeds, the migration of transgenic genes to their wild relatives and less likely migration of transgenic genes to other unrelated organisms by horizontal transference. Also, the contamination of food with transgenic residues has persuaded different countries to restrict importation of food made with transgenic plants or labelling food or ingredients as or from transgenic crops. There are worrying aspects about the effect of transgenic food over human health such as: 1) many of transgenic genes used today have never been present in human diet, making impossible to know the effect that they will cause, 2) the allergic potential of some proteins codified by some transgenic genes, and 3) in the genetic engineering of crops, many times a gene with antibiotic resistance is included like selectable gene, having the possibility that this gene migrates to pathogen bacteria that affect the health of plants, human and animal, developing bacterial resistance to those antibiotics making hard to have bacterial control. In the present work, literature is reviewed in order to present a perspective about some of the above concerns. In addition, are presented results of different studies in order to answer the following questions: a). Do DNA and proteins are degraded during the traditional soybean food processing?, b). Does food processing affect the persistence of transgenic residues? and c) Does is possible to develop more efficient techniques for detection of transgenic residues in soybean-based foods?