Biorefineries for the valorization of food processing waste

Abstract

The large amount of waste produced by the food industry constitutes a great loss of valuable materials and raises serious management problems from both the economic and environmental point of view. Many of these residues or by-products have, however, the potential to be utilized as raw materials into alternative production systems such as biorefineries. The present chapter deals with the use of the waste resulting from the food manufacturing industry, taking grape-derived waste, brewer's spent grain (BSG), olive-derived waste, potato-derived waste and dairy by-products as biorefinery examples. These processes are presented showing the feasibility and constraints of applying industrial symbiosis toward the implementation of a circular bioeconomy. Furthermore, value-added products with special interest for the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industry are highlighted, including some antioxidants and phenolic compounds with anticancer activity.