Native starches have limited applications in the food industry due to their unreactive and insoluble nature. Cold plasma technology, including plasma-activated water (PAW), has been explored to modify starches to enhance their functional, thermal, molecular, morphological, and physicochemical properties. Atmospheric cold plasma and low-pressure plasma systems have been used to alter starches and have proven successful. This review provides an in-depth analysis of the different cold plasma setups employed for starch modifications. The effect of cold plasma technology application on starch characteristics is summarized. We also discussed the potential of plasma-activated water as a novel alternative for starch modification. This review provides information needed for the industrial scale-up of cold plasma technologies as an eco-friendly method of starch modification. 

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crfs.2022.02.007

Cold plasma technologies: Their effect on starch properties and industrial scale-up for starch modification

Abstract Changing consumers’ taste for chemical and thermally processed food and preference for perceived healthier minimally processed alternatives is a challenge to food industry. At present, several technologies have found usefulness as choice methods for ensuring that processed food remains unaltered while guaranteeing maximum safety and protection of consumers. However, the effectiveness of most green technology is limited due to the formation of resistant spores by certain foodborne microorganisms and the production of toxins. Cold plasma, a recent technology, has shown commendable superiority at both spore inactivation and enzymes and toxin deactivation. However, the exact mechanism behind the efficiency of cold plasma has remained unclear. In order to further optimize and apply cold plasma treatment in food processing, it is crucial to understand these mechanisms and possible factors that might limit or enhance their effectiveness and outcomes. As a novel non-thermal technology, cold plasma has emerged as a means to ensure the microbiological safety of food. Furthermore, this review presents the different design configurations for cold plasma applications, analysis the mechanisms of microbial spore and biofilm inactivation, and examines the impact of cold plasma on food compositional, organoleptic, and nutritional quality. 

/pdf/a-cold-plasma-technology-for-ensuring-the-microbiological-3fekv5tu.pdf

A Cold Plasma Technology for Ensuring the Microbiological Safety and Quality of Foods

• Thermal and non-thermal technologies would eliminate pesticide residues. • Non-thermal technologies are superior to thermal technologies in pesticide residues decrease and quality attributes of fruits and vegetables retain. • Combined technologies are more effective than individual technologies. • Elimination efficiency is dependent on product types, pesticide characteristics, and operation parameters. • Green and pollution-free technologies and combined processing technologies are trends. Pesticide residues on food are threatening human health and wellbeing, ecological security. Food processing is one of the necessary ways to eliminate residues to guarantee the safety and sustainable development of the environment. This review outlines the mechanisms, applications, and factors influencing the efficiency as well as their limitations of pesticide residue elimination technologies. Conventional thermal processing technologies like drying, blanching, baking, and roasting have been proved to reduce pesticides extensively whereas sometimes concentration effects occur, and more toxic metabolites or by-products are generated. Additionally, the negative effects on quality attributes of fruits and vegetables (F&V) should be considered. Several innovative non-thermal processing technologies like ultrasound, cold plasma, high-pressure processing, and pulsed electric fields have flourished currently, which show great ability to eliminate pesticide residues significantly with minimal impact on the quality of F&V. In particular, heat-sensitive nutrients like ascorbic acid, phenolics, and carotenoids would retain to a great extent. Similarly, these technologies have their limitations. Furthermore, there is much information about combined processing technology affecting the pesticide behaviors of F&V. Finally, the future developments for pesticide elimination of these technologies are identified and discussed. 

Pesticide residue elimination for fruits and vegetables: the mechanisms, applications, and future trends of thermal and non-thermal technologies

Winter jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill. cv. Dongzao) is a very popular horticultural fruit worldwide, which contains a high number of bioactive compounds. Nevertheless, jujube is perishable by microbial contamination and has a short shelf life under non-controlled conditions. Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) presents a great potential for food sterilization, maintain postharvest quality, and prolonged storage time. Herein, this study investigated the potential effect of CAP with different exposure times (0, 5, 10, and 20 min) on the physicochemical and biochemical changes in jujube during 15-day storage at 4°C and 90% relative humidity (RH). The results showed that CAP treatment could obviously delay ripening, but displayed no effects on the speed of weight loss and moisture content. Meanwhile, the total native aerobic bacterial count in each jujube group was restrained during whole storage. However, CAP treatment showed a time-dependent manner to improve gene expression (PAL, 4CL, DFR, ANS, LAR, and ANR) related to phenolic biosynthesis. As compared to other groups, 20-min CAP treatment can keep or increase total phenolic content (TPC), maintain antioxidant activity, and reduce oxidative damage. Furthermore, the hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and malondialdehyde (MDA) content in jujube during middle storage were visibly reduced by 20-min CAP treatment. All in all, our findings concluded that appropriate CAP exposure time can be a promising candidate for the postharvest preservation of jujube.

/pdf/applying-cold-atmospheric-plasma-to-preserve-the-postharvest-1p68z7po.pdf

Applying Cold Atmospheric Plasma to Preserve the Postharvest Qualities of Winter Jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill. cv. Dongzao) During Cold Storage

Drying is an important and influential process to prolong the shelf-life of food in the food industry. Recent studies have shown that cold plasma (CP) as an emerging drying pretreatment technology can improve drying performance, reduce drying energy consumption, and improve dried food quality. This paper comprehensively reviewed the mechanism of CP improving drying performance, related equipment, energy consumption, influencing factors, and impact on drying quality. This review also discusses the advantages and disadvantages and proposes possible challenges and suggestions for future research. Most studies indicated that CP pretreatment could improve the drying rate and quality and reduce the drying energy consumption. CP can promote moisture diffusion and improve drying efficiency by etching the surface and affecting the internal microstructure. In addition, CP can enhance the quality of dried products by reducing drying time and enzyme activity. Further research is needed to explore the drying mechanisms and equipment innovations to promote the application of CP in the food drying industry. 

Sandra Tiemi Seó

Papers

Cold plasma in food processing: Design, mechanisms, and application