Jacques Mazoyer

Understanding the Effect of Processing on the Structure of Plant Cell Walls as a Mean to Design Novel Clean Label Ingredients

Plant cell walls are complex assemblies consisting of cellulose, hemicellulose, pectin, proteins, lignin... These composite materials are synthesized by the plant in order to provide strength, shape, growth, integrity and protection to the cells. Food processes on the other hand aim at disrupting these tight networks in order to extract the high-value ingredients inside the cell and cell wall: oil, starch, proteins, pectin, carrageenan, vitamins... This leads to the generation of 2 main streams: a high-value ingredient stream (e.g. pectin) and a disrupted plant cell wall side stream. Until recently, limited attention was paid to these side streams and they were often poorly valorized or even discarded without added value. However, these plant cell wall streams have gained accrued interest over the last decade for various reasons: economical, sustainability, consumer behavior, cost of raw materials...