Aug 2026· Frontiers in Nutrition· Vol 13· 0 citations· 254 references
Medicine
Abstract
The global food system is under growing strain to deliver sufficient high-quality protein for a rising population, while curbing environmental degradation, tackling climate change, and maintaining long-term food security. Conventional livestock production is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, excessive land and water use, and biodiversity loss, which has boosted demand for sustainable alternative proteins such as plant-based, microbial, algal, insect, fermented, and cultivated meat products. This multidisciplinary review comprehensively assesses these emerging protein sources across nutrition, environmental performance, and consumer acceptance. It evaluates their amino acid composition, protein digestibility, micronutrient density, and health effects, and quantifies their environmental impacts using life cycle assessment indicators. Noticeable trade-offs in processing intensity, energy consumption, and production scalability are also discussed. Key factors shaping consumer adoption, including sensory traits, cultural perceptions, affordability, and food neophobia, are analyzed. This study further explores technological advances, circular economy strategies, regulatory updates, and policy support for protein transition, identifies critical research gaps, and proposes an integrated multi-dimensional evaluation framework. The findings provide practical guidance for researchers, industrial practitioners, and policymakers to build resilient, equitable, and eco-friendly protein systems benefiting both human and planetary health.
Population growth in urban food systems has led to a decline in food resources and the emergence of social imbalances, while consumers’ shift toward a healthy and sustainable lifestyle, against the backdrop of a growing carbon footprint and negative health impacts, highlights the need to promote fish-based products as part of a balanced diet, alongside the implementation of circular strategies for utilizing byproducts from processing, which has led to increased interest in reformulating these products in accordance with the principles of the circular bioeconomy. Aquaculture and the agri-food industry generate a large amount of byproducts that are underutilized, even though they could be extremely useful as functional food ingredients. Recycling these streams into ingredients is an effective way to reduce food waste, make better use of resources, and lessen the environmental impact of food systems. In this context, by-products can be strategically incorporated into food reformulation processes, where their bioactive compounds simultaneously improve both the nutritional value and the technological function of foods. However, such approaches can only be effectively utilized if there is a coordinated framework that ensures food safety, supports scalable processing technologies, and complies with regulatory standards. This analysis takes an integrated approach to examine how specific processing strategies, quality control measures, and risk assessment protocols can work together to ensure nutritional optimization, guarantee food safety, and promote circular use. This paper also addresses how these interconnected systems contribute to maintaining public health and increasing consumer confidence, particularly in urban food systems. By highlighting these connections, the research offers a clearer operational perspective on applying circular economy principles to sustainable food production. Even with these opportunities, issues related to scalability, regulatory compliance, and the limited number of applied studies remain major challenges. In this context, this paper examines how the coordinated implementation of these mechanisms can contribute to public health, strengthen consumer confidence, and facilitate the transition to sustainable urban food systems. Finally, this paper offers a clearer operational perspective on how the principles of the circular economy can be effectively put into practice by harmonizing nutrition, safety, and value-added recovery.
Elena-Iuliana Flocea, Ioana Gucianu, M. Ciobanu et al.· Sustainability· 0 citations
This review aims to promote the broader application of insect protein by summarizing its nutritional and functional properties, with the ultimate goal of mitigating food security challenges exacerbated by global population growth.
This study employs a narrative review to evaluate the potential of insect protein for food applications. The analysis encompasses its nutritional profile, functional properties, innovative processing technologies, and food safety risk management.
This review demonstrates that insect protein is a high-quality nutritional source, characterized by high protein content, a balanced amino acid profile, a favorable lipid composition rich in essential fatty acids, and an abundance of vitamins and minerals. Its inherent advantages in resource efficiency and low environmental impact have led to its endorsement by the FAO as a strategic alternative protein source to support sustainable food systems.
In the context of rising global protein demand and the environmental limitations of conventional agriculture, this study consolidates evidence that edible insect protein represents a viable and sustainable alternative. Its integration into the food supply chain holds significant potential to alleviate pressure on traditional livestock and plant protein systems, thereby contributing to global food security.
Enhui Guo, Xiaoyu Lei, Chao Sun et al.· British Food Journal· 0 citations
This chapter examines hybrid food systems as a strategic response to the challenges of rising global protein demand, population aging, environmental constraints, and changing dietary expectations. Hybrid foods, defined as formulations combining animal-derived ingredients with plant, fungal, insect, or other novel protein sources, are presented as a pragmatic pathway to reconcile nutritional adequacy, technological functionality, sustainability, and consumer acceptance within the ongoing protein transition. The chapter reviews the wide range of raw materials used in hybrid food design, emphasizing their complementary roles. Plant and fungal ingredients contribute dietary fiber, bioactive compounds, and reduced environmental impact, while animal-derived components ensure high-quality protein, essential micronutrients, and techno-functional properties. These combinations enable nutritionally complete products while promoting resource efficiency and circularity through the valorization of underutilized by-products. Processing technologies are identified as central to hybrid food performance. Conventional and emerging processes, such as mixing, cooking, extrusion, non-thermal treatments, and 3D food printing, govern structure, sensory quality, digestibility, and nutrient bioavailability by shaping interactions between heterogeneous protein sources. Evidence reviewed in the chapter indicates that well-designed hybrid matrices can maintain, or even enhance, protein digestibility and mineral bioavailability compared to purely animal- or plant-based products. The chapter further addresses health implications, consumer acceptance, and environmental performance. Hybrid foods can reduce saturated fat intake and environmental footprints while maintaining sensory appeal, particularly for flexitarian consumers. Life cycle assessments and market analyses suggest that hybrid foods align with dietary guidelines and sustainability policies, positioning them as a scalable and socially acceptable lever for future food systems.
L. Théron, M. Meurillon, S. Portanguen et al.· Advances in Food and Nutriti...· 0 citations
Food security and environmental sustainability have emerged as major global challenges, driving the search for alternative protein production systems that can meet growing demand while reducing the environmental burden of conventional livestock farming. Among emerging alternatives, cultivated meat has gained considerable attention due to its potential to produce animal-derived protein without the need for large-scale animal rearing and slaughter. Although cultivated meat remains absent from most commercial markets owing to technical, economic, and regulatory challenges, significant milestones have been achieved, including regulatory approval in Singapore in 2020, completion of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration pre-market safety consultation in 2022, and authorization for commercial sale by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2023. Substantial progress has been made in cell sourcing, cell-line engineering, serum-free culture media development, scaffold fabrication, and bioprocess optimization. However, large-scale production of cultivated meat with desirable texture, flavor, nutritional quality, and economic viability remains challenging. Key bottlenecks include the development of cost-effective animal-component-free media, scalable bioreactor systems, edible scaffold materials, and efficient downstream processing strategies. This review provides an updated assessment of recent advances in cultivated meat technology, encompassing cell-line development, scaffold engineering, bioprocessing, post-processing approaches, sustainability considerations, and regulatory frameworks. Furthermore, current technological limitations, commercialization challenges, and future research priorities are discussed to evaluate the potential role of cultivated meat within sustainable and resilient future food systems.
Zaryab Shafi, P. Nath, V. Pandey et al.· Biotechnology and Bioenginee...· 0 citations
The growing demand for sustainable and nutritionally adequate protein sources has intensified interest in alternative plant proteins capable of supporting future food systems. However, many conventional plant proteins still present limitations related to allergenicity, digestibility, sensory quality, and functional performance, highlighting the need for novel sustainable ingredients. In this context, rice protein has emerged as a promising alternative due to its hypoallergenic nature, gluten-free composition, relatively high digestibility, suitability for specialized dietary applications, favorable techno-functional characteristics, and compatibility with sustainable food production systems. This review provides an integrated perspective on rice protein by critically discussing its nutritional quality, techno-functional properties, health-promoting potential, emerging food applications, and contribution to sustainable food systems, thereby addressing knowledge that has remained fragmented across previous reviews. Recent scientific studies addressing protein composition, digestibility, bioactive peptides, processing technologies, and applications in plant-based foods and nutraceutical systems were critically analyzed. Current evidence demonstrated that rice proteins and rice-derived peptides exhibit antioxidant, antihypertensive, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, and immunomodulatory activities, while recent advances in protein modification technologies have significantly improved solubility, emulsification, gelation, and structuring properties. Furthermore, the valorization of rice bran and broken rice supports circular economy strategies and sustainable food production. In this way, rice protein represents a strategic ingredient for the development of next-generation functional foods and sustainable health-oriented dietary systems.
S. Meza, L. Rodrigues, S. Medina et al.· Plant Foods for Human Nutrit...· 0 citations
The rapid growth of the global population has increased the demand for safe, healthy, and sustainable food, and fish supplies about 20% of the world's protein demand. Fishery products are rich in nutrient compositions such as moisture, protein, lipids, minerals, etc. Moisture and fatty acid components that favor microbial spoilage and lipid oxidation are susceptible to post‐harvest losses, leading to compromised food security and economic development. Preservation methods including chilling, freezing, and packaging improve shelf‐life but provide only temporary protection. Although synthetic preservatives are widely used to preserve fish, growing concerns about their potential toxicity have raised questions about their safety. Consequently, consumers are increasingly choosing natural and eco‐friendly preservation methods. Bioactive compounds derived from photosynthetic marine macroalgae (seaweed) are gaining attention on a global scale. Seaweed is considerably rich in phenols, phlorotannins, polysaccharides, pigments, and essential minerals, which exhibit impressive antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. These bioactive compounds can be used as fish ingredients and coatings of fish products, increasing shelf‐life, enhancing safety, and ultimately improving nutritional quality while reducing spoilage. This review summarizes the seaweed‐based preservatives as a sustainable approach to enhancing the quality, safety, and shelf‐life of fish and fishery products, thereby supporting global food systems. In conclusion, seaweeds provide sustainable natural antioxidants and antimicrobials that improve the shelf‐life, functionality, and nutritional quality of fishery products.
Ashika Banu Rodela, M. Rasul, Ilias Ebne Kabir et al.· Food Safety and Health· 0 citations
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