article · Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety
Nonthermal plasma technology offers effective antimicrobial treatment while preserving the physical, chemical, sensory, and nutritional qualities of various food products. Its effects on functional components, particularly low-molecular-weight bioactive compounds and vitamins, depend heavily on the specific plasma properties and the food matrix involved. The primary chemical mechanisms driving these changes involve oxidative degradation and the cleavage of double bonds in organic molecules. Current evidence indicates that treatment can lead to time-dependent increases in vitamin C and polyphenol concentrations, alongside enhanced overall antioxidant activity. The process can also improve the efficiency of polyphenol extraction. Because nonthermal plasma can exert both beneficial and detrimental effects on functional food constituents, further investigation into the complex interactions between plasma-reactive species and food matrices is required to support reliable implementation across the food processing sector.
Consumers and food processors require preservation techniques that eliminate harmful microorganisms without degrading healthy nutrients or sensory quality. Nonthermal plasma can reduce pathogens while maintaining or even enhancing key vitamins and antioxidant compounds. Clarifying how this process alters food chemistry is essential for developing manufacturing methods that safeguard both food safety and dietary value.
The technology offers food industry manufacturers an approach for microbial control and enhanced polyphenol extraction. Industrial adoption requires careful management of plasma parameters and food matrix interactions to prevent unwanted oxidative degradation. While core antimicrobial benefits are proven across several food products, ongoing research into the complex chemical mechanisms indicates that commercial implementation is currently at an early-to-intermediate applied stage.
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Understanding the impact of nonthermal plasma (NTP) technology on key nutritional and functional food components is of paramount importance for the successful adoption of the technology by industry. NTP technology (NTPT) has demonstrated marked antimicrobial efficacies with good retention of important physical, chemical, sensory, and nutritional parameters for an array of food products. This paper presents the influence of NTPT on selected functional food components with a focus on low-molecular-weight bioactive compounds and vitamins. We discuss the mechanisms of bioactive compound alteration by plasma-reactive species and classify their influence on vitamins and their antioxidant capacities. The impact of NTP on specific bioactive compounds depends both on plasma properties and the food matrix. Induced changes are mainly associated with oxidative degradation and cleavage of double bonds in organic compounds. The effects reported to date are mainly time-dependent increases in the concentrations of polyphenols, vitamin C, or increases in antioxidant activity. Also, improvement in the extraction efficiency of polyphenols is observed. The review highlights future research needs regarding the complex mechanisms of interaction with plasma species. NTP is a novel technology that can both negatively and positively affect the functional components in food.
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DOI: 10.1111/1541-4337.12379
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