A new report aims to identify the product development and nutrition research opportunities that arise for food manufacturers from consumers’ growing concern about nutrition and health.
The report, published in Comprehensive Reviews In Food Science and Food Safety, identifies in detail the following opportunities:
Calorie reduction by structure design
Calorie reduction by carbohydrate and/or fat substitutes
Intense sweeteners.
Resistant starch.
Fat replacers.
Calorie reduction by the inhibition of enzymes in carbohydrate and/or fat digestion
Regulating compounds of some metabolic functions
Food-derived bioactive peptides
Probiotics
Enrichment of foods with bioactive compounds
The role of the food industry
As the WHO Regional Office for Europe commits to raising awareness and promoting political commitment to food- and nutrition-related health, this plan aims to reduce the prevalence of diet-related diseases and to reverse the obesity trend in children and adolescents.
To achieve these health goals, the report argues that population nutrition goals should be adopted in line with FAO/WHO recommendations: <10% of daily energy intake from saturated fatty acids; <1% of daily energy intake from trans fatty acids; <10% of daily energy intake from free sugars; ≥400 g fruits and vegetables a day; and <5 g a day of salt.
The report concludes that today's food industry must develop innovative solutions that address nutrition challenges.
Indeed food manufacturers have a responsibility to supply the widest range of products in accordance with the principles of dietary guidelines. The food industry can contribute by improving the availability of healthy food choices, specifically by reducing the availability of energy-dense products; by improving the nutrient profile of food through reductions in the salt, sugar, total fat, and saturated fat content; and by increasing the content of bioactive compounds.
