Maria Tufariello

Traditional processing can modify the nutritional and volatile characteristics of cereal-based foods. This study evaluated Moroccan Bandek production, comprising soaking, steaming, solar drying, and roasting, using three durum wheat genotypes—conventional Svevo, high-amylose Svevo HA, and soft-kernel Faridur—and the high-β-glucan hull-less barley Chifaa. Raw wholemeal flours and corresponding Bandek products were analyzed for color, protein, β-glucan, resistant starch, iron, zinc, phenolic compounds, antioxidant capacity, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). In vitro starch hydrolysis and predicted glycemic index (pGI) were determined in Bandek products. Compared with the corresponding flours, Bandek products were darker and showed higher resistant starch, extractable phenolic compounds, antioxidant capacity, iron, and zinc concentrations, whereas protein content was lower. However, marked differences emerged among the cereal matrices. Among the durum wheats, Svevo HA Bandek had the highest resistant starch content (6.82%) and a lower pGI than conventional Svevo, whereas Faridur showed the highest pGI (74.75%). In contrast, Chifaa barley Bandek retained 6.03% β-glucan and had the lowest pGI (53.78), clearly distinguishing it from the durum wheat products. Following standardized sample preparation, total semi-quantitative VOC abundance was higher in Bandek than in flour, with pyrazines providing the clearest distinction between the processed and raw matrices and additional variation attributable to genotype. These findings demonstrate that Bandek characteristics depend strongly on the cereal species and genotype, highlighting the distinct nutritional potential of high-β-glucan barley and high-amylose durum wheat.

Traditional processing can modify the nutritional and volatile characteristics of cere-al-based foods. This study evaluated Moroccan Bandek production, comprising soaking, steaming, solar drying, and roasting, in four cereal matrices: conventional durum wheat (Svevo), high-amylose durum wheat (Svevo HA), soft-kernel durum wheat (Faridur), and high-β-glucan hull-less barley (Chifaa). Raw wholemeal flours and corresponding Bandek products were analyzed for color, protein, β-glucan, resistant starch, iron, zinc, phenolic compounds, antioxidant capacity, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). In vitro starch hydrolysis and predicted glycemic index (pGI) were determined in Bandek products. Compared with the corresponding flours, Bandek products were darker and showed higher resistant starch, extractable phenolic compounds, antioxidant capacity, iron, and zinc values, whereas protein content was lower. Chifaa Bandek retained 6.03% β-glucan and had the lowest pGI (53.78), while Svevo HA contained the most resistant starch (6.82%). Following standardized sample preparation, total semi-quantitative VOC abundance was higher in Bandek than in flour, with pyrazines providing the clearest distinction between the matrices. Multivariate analyses separated Bandek products from raw flours and revealed additional genotype-dependent variation. These findings in-dicate that the nutritional and volatile characteristics of Bandek depend on the interaction between the composition of the starting cereal matrix and the traditional processing, supporting further evaluation of high-β-glucan barley and high-amylose durum wheat for traditional cereal foods.

The production of fermented beverages using different fruits has attracted increasing interest due to evolving consumer preferences (e.g., health consciousness and demand for low-alcohol products) and technological advances in the production process. Yeasts play a fundamental role in determining the sensory, chemical and functional properties of these beverages. This review aims to summarize the latest scientific publications on the selection and use of Saccharomyces and non-Saccharomyces starter yeasts for juice processing. It illustrates and discusses the most recent findings on isolation and characterization techniques, from phenotypic screening to sophisticated ‘omics’ approaches, which allow precise identification and engineering of yeast strains. The impact of various inoculation strategies, such as single-strain inoculation, sequential inoculation, and co-fermentation with different strains, is analyzed according to its effect on the quality and complexity of the final product. Recent advances in the application of genomics and metabolomics to re-evaluate fruit by-products highlight the importance of innovation in developing new, sustainable, diverse fermented fruit beverages.

The development of new food processes and formulations begins at the laboratory stage, progresses through pilot plant trials, and culminates in industrial production. Although the positive effects in terms of sensory characteristics and qualitative differentiation have been widely studied at laboratory level, fermentations conducted at the industrial level by oenological Saccharomyces cerevisiae and non-Saccharomyces strains have not been thoroughly investigated. Scaling up to the industrial level is a critical process that involves more than simply increasing the dimensions of the process itself. The purpose of our research was to compare laboratory and industrial-level brewing of a novel craft beer produced with the addition of common unmalted wheat and fermented by Schizosaccharomyces pombe and S. cerevisiae strains. Fermentation was carried out using a S. cerevisiae strain either of oenological origin alone or through sequential inoculations with S. pombe. Beers produced with the mixed starter showed greater reproducibility between the two production levels than those fermented by S. cerevisiae alone. According to the results, the main differences highlighted between laboratory and industrial-level trials with S. cerevisiae alone concerned the extent of starch degradation, fermentation efficiency, and alcohol production, which were higher in brewing at the laboratory level. In contrast, beers produced at industrial level using sequential inoculation received significantly higher scores for foam quantity and persistence, as well as overall olfactory intensity, while scoring significantly lower scores for saltiness and sourness. To our knowledge, this research is the first to explore the use of Sc. pombe for industrial beer production.

Grape variety, quality, geographic origins and phytopathology can influence the amount of polyphenols that accumulate in grape tissues. Polyphenols in wine not only shape their organoleptic characteristics but also significantly contribute to the positive impact that this beverage has on human health. However, during the winemaking process, the total polyphenol content is substantially reduced due to the adsorption onto yeast wall polymers and subsequent lees separation. Despite this, limited information is available regarding the influence of the yeast starter strain on the polyphenolic profile of wine. To address this issue, a population consisting of 136 Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains was analyzed to identify those with a diminished ability to adsorb polyphenols. Firstly, the reduction in concentration of polyphenolic compounds associated to each strain was studied by assaying Total Phenolic Content (TPC) and Trolox Equivalent Antioxidant Capacity (TEAC) in the wines produced by micro-scale must fermentation. A total of 29 strains exhibiting a TPC and TEAC reduction ≤ 50%, when compared to that detected in the utilized grape must were identified and the nine most-promising strains were further validated by larger-scale vinification. Physico-chemical analyses of the resulting wines led to the identification of four strains, namely ITEM6920, ITEM9500, ITEM9507 and ITEM9508 which showed, compared to the control wine, a TPC and TEAC reduction ≤ 20 in the produced wines. They were denoted by a significant (p < 0.05) increased amount of anthocyanin, quercetin and trans-coutaric acid, minimal volatile acidity (<0.2 g/L), absence of undesirable metabolites and a well-balanced volatile profile. As far as we know, this investigation represents the first clonal selection of yeast strains aimed at the identifying “functional” fermentation starters, thereby enabling the production of regional wines with enriched polyphenolic content.