Food Engineering Reviews最新文献

{"title":"Processing Technologies for Designing Micro- and Nano-Structured Plant-Based Dairy Alternatives: Structure–Function and Stability Relationships","authors":"Danna González-Padilla,&nbsp;Santiago Papaqui-Labastida,&nbsp;Martha-Gabriela López-Prado,&nbsp;Maritza Alonzo-Macías,&nbsp;Carmen Téllez-Pérez,&nbsp;Anaberta Cardador-Martínez","doi":"10.1007/s12393-026-09466-5","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12393-026-09466-5","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Plant-based dairy alternatives (PBMAs) are structurally complex colloidal systems whose technological performance depends on the organization of dispersed phases, interfaces, and continuous-phase networks. This narrative review examines processing and formulation strategies used to engineer micro- and nano-structured PBMAs and evaluates how processing-induced structural modifications influence functionality and stability. Peer-reviewed literature was identified through Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed/MEDLINE, complemented by targeted searches of publisher platforms and reference lists, prioritizing experimental studies reporting processing conditions and structural, functional, or stability outcomes. The reviewed evidence demonstrates that structural modification does not necessarily improve product performance. Ultrasonication reduced fat-globule size in plant-based frozen desserts from approximately 20 to 7 μm, whereas pulsed electric field treatment reduced particle size and prevented apparent phase separation in almond milk for 28 days at 4 °C. Conversely, UHT treatment increased particle diameter in a 5% faba bean protein beverage from 2.48 ± 0.04 to 11.83 ± 0.16 μm and promoted aggregation and creaming. High-pressure processing generated viscoelastic plant-protein networks with gel strengths of approximately 10²–10³ Pa, although responses differed among protein sources. Functional responses were also matrix-dependent: nanoemulsification increased free fatty acid release from 27.8% to &gt; 80%, whereas nanoparticle incorporation did not significantly alter vitamin D bioaccessibility (~ 20%). Overall, reduced structural scale alone is not a reliable predictor of improved functionality or stability. Performance depends on matrix composition, processing conditions, interfacial organization, and targeted product architecture, highlighting the need for standardized evaluation and quantitative processing–structure–function relationships.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":565,"journal":{"name":"Food Engineering Reviews","volume":"18 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":13.5,"publicationDate":"2026-11-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149338329","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Advances in Microwave-assisted Extraction Modeling: Mechanistic, Computational, and Data-driven Approaches","authors":"Fahmidha Faizal,&nbsp;Archana Mahapatra,&nbsp;Priyanka Sakare,&nbsp;Satish Gaharwariya,&nbsp;Sandeep Kumar,&nbsp;Nandkishore Thombare,&nbsp;Saroj Kumar Giri,&nbsp;Abhijit Kar","doi":"10.1007/s12393-026-09465-6","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12393-026-09465-6","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) has emerged as an efficient and sustainable technology for recovering bioactive compounds from plant materials, food-processing residues, and agro-industrial by-products. However, the complex interactions among electromagnetic energy absorption, heat transfer, mass transfer, solvent characteristics, and plant-matrix properties create significant challenges for process understanding, optimization, and industrial scale-up. This review critically examines recent advances in MAE modeling, covering the progression from empirical and kinetic models to mechanistic, computational, and data-driven approaches. Fundamental aspects of microwave heating and transport phenomena are discussed, along with physics-based models describing electromagnetic, thermal, and mass-transfer processes. Advances in numerical and multiphysics simulations, including finite element, finite difference, and computational fluid dynamics approaches, are evaluated with emphasis on process visualization, optimization, and scale-up. The increasing role of machine-learning techniques, hybrid modeling strategies, physics-informed artificial intelligence, and digital twins in developing intelligent extraction systems is also highlighted. The strengths, limitations, applicability, and future potential of different modeling approaches are critically compared. The review demonstrates that integration of mechanistic knowledge with computational simulations and artificial intelligence can enhance predictive capability, improve process control, and accelerate the development of sustainable, scalable, and digitally enabled MAE technologies.</p><h3>Graphical Abstract</h3><div><figure><div><div><picture><source><img></source></picture></div></div></figure></div></div>","PeriodicalId":565,"journal":{"name":"Food Engineering Reviews","volume":"18 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":13.5,"publicationDate":"2026-11-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149338541","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Superheated Steam as a Promising Processing Technology for the Modification of Starch and Starch-Rich Food Matrices","authors":"Kadavakollu Subrahmanyam,&nbsp;Hujie Lyu,&nbsp;Saima Nigar,&nbsp;Ka-Hing Wong,&nbsp;Changyu Zhou,&nbsp;Fan Zhu,&nbsp;Rachna Sehrawat,&nbsp;Khalid Gul,&nbsp;Ren-You Gan","doi":"10.1007/s12393-026-09463-8","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12393-026-09463-8","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Starch is one of the most abundant biopolymers with diverse industrial applications, but the inherent limitations of native starch such as high viscosity, low solubility, poor thermal stability, and rapid retrogradation often restrict its direct use. This has driven growing interest in sustainable and industrially viable modification technologies. Superheated steam (SS) has emerged as a promising processing medium because of its rapid heat transfer, limited-oxygen environment, and potential advantages in energy recovery and process sustainability. This review critically synthesizes available studies on SS generation, heat and mass transfer, and its effects on the structural, physicochemical, functional, and digestibility characteristics of isolated starches and starch-rich food matrices. Reported studies show that SS can modify starch solubility, viscosity, thermal stability, retrogradation, and enzymatic digestibility, with the extent of these changes strongly dependent on processing conditions and matrix composition. SS-treated starches and starch-rich matrices have also shown potential for improving the rheological, textural, cooking, and storage properties of products such as baked goods, noodles, and puffed foods. In addition, SS can facilitate chemical modification of starch, particularly citric acid esterification. Overall, SS is a promising clean-label approach for tailoring starch functionality, although further mechanistic, scale-up, and techno-economic studies are needed to support broader industrial application.</p><h3>Graphical Abstract</h3><div><figure><div><div><picture><source><img></source></picture></div></div></figure></div></div>","PeriodicalId":565,"journal":{"name":"Food Engineering Reviews","volume":"18 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":13.5,"publicationDate":"2026-11-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149338540","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Engineering Brewery By-products into Alternative Proteins: Emerging Recovery Technologies and Food Safety Perspectives","authors":"Shashi Kant Bhatia,&nbsp;Yung-Hun Yang","doi":"10.1007/s12393-026-09464-7","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12393-026-09464-7","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The increasing global demand for sustainable protein sources has intensified interest in valorizing agro-industrial by-products within circular bioeconomy frameworks. Brewery by-products, particularly brewer’s spent grain (BSG) and brewer’s spent yeast (BSY), are abundant protein-rich feedstocks with potential applications in alternative protein production. However, efficient protein recovery remains a major engineering challenge due to lignocellulosic complexity, rigid microbial cell walls, high moisture content, and substrate heterogeneity. This review critically evaluates conventional and emerging engineering strategies for protein extraction and fractionation from brewery by-products, including alkaline-assisted extraction, enzymatic hydrolysis, ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE), microwave-assisted extraction (MAE), pulsed electric field (PEF), hydrothermal/subcritical water processing, and natural deep eutectic solvent (NADES)-based systems. Emerging technologies can enhance protein recovery, solubility, emulsification, foaming properties, and bioactive peptide generation under optimized processing conditions, although their effectiveness varies depending on the technology, operating parameters, and characteristics of the brewery by-product. However, industrial applications remain limited by challenges associated with scale-up, energy consumption, solvent recovery, enzyme cost, membrane fouling, and process integration. Safety concerns, including mycotoxin contamination in BSG and high nucleic acid content in BSY, also present important regulatory barriers. The review further discusses food, feed, aquaculture, and nutraceutical applications of brewery by-products proteins and highlights future opportunities for integrated brewery biorefineries and zero waste processing systems to support sustainable alternative protein production and future food security.</p><h3>Graphical Abstract</h3><div><figure><div><div><picture><source><img></source></picture></div></div></figure></div></div>","PeriodicalId":565,"journal":{"name":"Food Engineering Reviews","volume":"18 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":13.5,"publicationDate":"2026-11-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149338229","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Advances of Ultrasound-Assisted Meat Curing in Quality Enhancement for Health-Oriented Product Development","authors":"Yiwei Jiang,&nbsp;Ting Yu,&nbsp;Fujie Yan","doi":"10.1007/s12393-026-09460-x","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12393-026-09460-x","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Despite its widespread use, traditional meat curing is time-consuming and often yields inconsistent product quality owing to slow and heterogeneous mass transfer. Ultrasound-assisted curing overcomes these limitations by generating cavitation, mechanical, and thermal effects that enhance brine diffusion, disrupt the myofibrillar matrix, and tenderize meat. This review critically evaluates recent advances in ultrasonic curing, encompassing mass transfer dynamics, quality modulation, process intensification strategies, and commercial potential. Ultrasound significantly improves water-holding capacity, tenderness, colour, and flavour, yet the anisotropic and porous nature of meat demands meticulous control of acoustic parameters to avoid protein denaturation and textural deterioration. Process efficacy can be substantially elevated by integrating statistical optimisation with numerical simulation and machine learning, developing purpose-built industrial equipment that delivers a uniform sound field with precise temperature regulation, and synergistically combining ultrasound with complementary technologies such as vacuum or pressure pulsation. Furthermore, exploiting this technology to formulate low-salt products, texture-modified foods for the elderly, and health-oriented meal replacements offers a compelling pathway toward large-scale commercial adoption.</p><h3>Graphical Abstract</h3><div><figure><div><div><picture><source><img></source></picture></div></div></figure></div></div>","PeriodicalId":565,"journal":{"name":"Food Engineering Reviews","volume":"18 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":13.5,"publicationDate":"2026-10-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149339584","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Synergistic Enzyme-Assisted Extraction Strategies for Phenolic Compounds: Integrating Emerging Technologies, Green Solvents, and Process Intensification","authors":"Isadora Lopes de Oliveira,&nbsp;Monique Martins Strieder,&nbsp;Amanda Rejane Alves de Ávila,&nbsp;Thais C. Brito-Oliveira,&nbsp;Alice Helena de Souza Paulino,&nbsp;Pedro Henrique Santos,&nbsp;Gabriela Alves Macedo,&nbsp;Maurício Ariel Rostagno","doi":"10.1007/s12393-026-09462-9","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12393-026-09462-9","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The increasing demand for sustainable and high-value bioactive ingredients has intensified the search for extraction strategies capable of overcoming the structural complexity of plant matrices and improving the recovery of phenolic compounds. In this context, the integration of hydrolytic enzymes with emerging extraction technologies has emerged as a promising approach to enhance extraction efficiency and selectivity. This review critically discusses the synergistic interactions between enzymatic hydrolysis and emerging extraction technologies, including high-intensity ultrasound, microwave-assisted extraction, pressurized liquid extraction, and supercritical fluid extraction. Particular emphasis is placed on the mechanisms by which hydrolytic enzymes disrupt plant cell wall structures and hydrolyze glycosidic bonds, promoting the release of bound phenolics and the formation of more bioactive aglycone derivatives. The effects of process parameters, matrix characteristics, and mass transfer phenomena on extraction performance are also critically examined. In addition, the role of green solvents, especially natural deep eutectic solvents and mixtures based on natural compounds, is explored regarding enzyme activity, extraction efficiency, and process sustainability. Hybrid and sequential extraction configurations are comparatively analyzed to identify technological advantages and operational trade-offs associated with process intensification. Beyond conventional descriptive approaches, this review provides an integrated engineering perspective on enzyme-assisted extraction systems by connecting enzymatic mechanisms, extraction technologies, solvent interactions, and sustainability aspects within a unified process framework. Overall, the findings highlight the potential of intensified enzyme-assisted extraction systems for sustainable valorization of agro-industrial residues into high-value functional ingredients while advancing greener and more efficient bioprocessing strategies.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":565,"journal":{"name":"Food Engineering Reviews","volume":"18 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":13.5,"publicationDate":"2026-10-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s12393-026-09462-9.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149338822","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Artificial Intelligence for Predicting Food Texture, Rheology and Sensory Attributes: Current Applications and Future Directions","authors":"Aadarsh Kumar,&nbsp;Suruchi Kumari,&nbsp;Suresh Kumar Yatirajula","doi":"10.1007/s12393-026-09459-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12393-026-09459-4","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;p&gt;Texture, rheological behaviour, and sensory perception are critical determinants of food quality, consumer acceptance, and processing performance. Conventional evaluation methods, including instrumental analyses and trained sensory panels, are labour-intensive, time-consuming, and often lack inter-laboratory reproducibility, limiting their application in rapid and scalable food quality assessment. Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have transformed this field by enabling accurate, data-driven prediction of complex physicochemical and sensory attributes from heterogeneous datasets. This review critically examines AI-driven approaches for predicting food texture, rheology, and sensory characteristics, covering classical machine learning, deep learning, graph neural networks, transfer learning, foundation models, and explainable AI. Across the studies synthesised in this review, classical machine learning and gradient-boosting models achieved coefficients of determination of R² = 0.94–0.98 for rheological and compositional prediction tasks, convolutional and transformer-based deep learning architectures reached correlations of &lt;i&gt;r&lt;/i&gt; = 0.91–0.97 for texture attributes derived from imaging data, and electronic sensing and multimodal fusion approaches achieved classification accuracies of 91–99% while reducing false alarms by up to 31% relative to single-modality models. Particular emphasis is placed on integrating advanced sensing technologies, including hyperspectral imaging, near-infrared spectroscopy, computer vision, and electronic nose and tongue systems, with multimodal data fusion for comprehensive food quality evaluation. Applications across bakery, dairy, meat, plant-based products, emulsions, gels, and 3D-printed foods are discussed to highlight technological advances and industrial relevance. AI models consistently outperform conventional statistical methods by capturing complex nonlinear relationships among formulation, processing, structural, and sensory variables, thereby improving predictive accuracy, robustness, and scalability. Furthermore, explainable AI frameworks, including SHAP, LIME, and Grad-CAM, together with emerging generative AI and digital twin technologies, are enhancing model transparency and enabling predictive formulation and intelligent food design. However, most reviewed studies report internal cross-validation only, with few employing external, independent validation sets, and typical published datasets remain small (often fewer than 500 samples), which constrains generalisability across food categories. Despite challenges related to data standardisation, model generalizability, and regulatory implementation, continued advances in explainable and multimodal AI are expected to accelerate transparent, reliable, and scalable food quality assessment and product innovation.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Graphical Abstract&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;Conceptual pipeline illustrating AI-driven prediction of food texture, rheology, and sensory ","PeriodicalId":565,"journal":{"name":"Food Engineering Reviews","volume":"18 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":13.5,"publicationDate":"2026-10-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149189110","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"An Omics Approach to Understand the Role of Fermentation in Modulating the Bioactive and Functional Properties of Coffee","authors":"Juan David Dereix,&nbsp;Andrés Fernando González Barrios,&nbsp;Mónica P. Cala","doi":"10.1007/s12393-026-09457-6","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12393-026-09457-6","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>In today’s evolving market, traditional beverages such as coffee are undergoing significant transformations to align with contemporary consumption patterns. Fermentation has emerged as a powerful targeted intervention within the coffee production chain, strategically reshaping the metabolic profile of beans and creating unique sensory characteristics. However, the current trajectory extends beyond flavor, with an increasing emphasis on enhancing functionality and bioactivity. Achieving these refined profiles introduces new complexities, including the need for precise process monitoring, non-standard protocols, and the application of specific microbial inoculants during fermentation. Such multifaceted research, which involves numerous interacting variables, necessitates the integration of omics technologies to decode the underlying microbial and biochemical dynamics. This review examines the current literature on the fermentation-mediated modulation of the functional and bioactive properties of coffee using omics. The analysis illustrates how different fermentation methods and microbial strains influence these properties in distinct, and at times divergent, ways, yielding diverse compositional changes linked to potential health-promoting activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, anticancer, and antidiabetic activities, and cardioprotective effects. Targeted and untargeted metabolomics, metagenomics, and metabarcoding are the predominant techniques used to map these associations. There is a growing research focus on fermentation strategies designed not only to craft distinctive aroma profiles but also to engineer nutraceutical beverage experiences. This shift highlights the potential of directed fermentation to reposition coffee from a conventional stimulant to a functionally designed component of a health-conscious diet that promotes health.</p><h3>Graphical Abstract</h3><div><figure><div><div><picture><source><img></source></picture></div></div></figure></div></div>","PeriodicalId":565,"journal":{"name":"Food Engineering Reviews","volume":"18 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":13.5,"publicationDate":"2026-10-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149163112","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Advances in the Production and Extraction of Polysaccharides from Oyster Mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) as a Potential Bioactive Ingredient in Food Applications","authors":"José R. Ceja-Castro,&nbsp;Viridiana Tejada-Ortigoza,&nbsp;Ivan Luzardo-Ocampo,&nbsp;Johanan Espinosa-Ramírez","doi":"10.1007/s12393-026-09458-5","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12393-026-09458-5","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><i>Pleurotus ostreatus</i> polysaccharides (POPs) are major structural components of the fungal cell wall and have attracted interest due to their potential bioactive and techno-functional properties as food additives. Although considerable attention has been given to their biological activities, an integrated overview of the effects of production, extraction, and purification strategies on specific polysaccharide yield, structure, and functionality remains insufficiently understood. Production strategies largely focus on maximizing polysaccharide bioaccumulation by either substrate modification or abiotic stress. Extraction technologies have evolved into advanced methods, such as ultrasound, enzymatic hydrolysis, microwaves, subcritical water, and supercritical fluids, to overcome the limitations of conventional extraction techniques, which have low extraction efficiency and pose a risk of structural damage to the POPs. This review aims to compare current production, extraction, and purification strategies and evaluates their effect on polysaccharide yield, structural characteristics, bioactivity, and techno-functional properties in food matrices. This work synthesizes the literature published between 2015 and 2025, identifies research gaps, and proposes future research directions to improve POPs production, extraction, and purification.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":565,"journal":{"name":"Food Engineering Reviews","volume":"18 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":13.5,"publicationDate":"2026-09-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148927463","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ultrafine Grinding Processing Technology: Equipment, Mechanism, and Application","authors":"Zhenyang Ou,&nbsp;Xiangyang Ma,&nbsp;Mingzheng Liu,&nbsp;Huayang Zhao,&nbsp;Zongming Zhou,&nbsp;Ji Che,&nbsp;Yanbin Zhang,&nbsp;Min Yang,&nbsp;Fuxing Gu,&nbsp;Yuxin Sun,&nbsp;Teng Gao,&nbsp;Changhe Li","doi":"10.1007/s12393-026-09449-6","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12393-026-09449-6","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Ultrafine grinding (UFG) has emerged as an effective strategy for particle-scale regulation and interfacial activation, and has shown considerable engineering value in food powder processing, release of functional components, and value-added utilization of by-products. During size reduction to the micrometer scale, increases in specific surface area, elevation of surface energy, and microstructural reconstruction often occur simultaneously, thereby markedly affecting dissolution/leaching kinetics, dispersion stability, processing adaptability, and functional performance. However, the links among grinding methods, multi-scale breakage mechanisms, property evolution, and application outcomes remain insufficiently integrated because breakage kinetics, energy dissipation, multiphase flow–particle interactions, and particle agglomeration are highly coupled. In this context, this review focuses primarily on food materials, with traditional Chinese medicinal materials (TCMs) as a supplementary point of comparison, to summarize recent advances in UFG. First, based on the classification of dry and wet routes, various UFG approaches are reviewed with emphasis on their energy-transfer mechanisms, equipment characteristics, material-processing boundaries, and process differences from conventional equipment. Second, from the perspectives of micromechanics, energy consumption, and particle-size evolution, recent advances in fracture and energy theories, multiscale particle mechanics models, CFD–DEM coupling, and population balance modeling are summarized. Furthermore, the effects of UFG on powder morphology, particle-size distribution, flowability, hydration/solubility, and functional properties of food and TCMs are discussed, with particular attention to cell-wall disruption, release of bioactive constituents, structural reconstruction, and over-grinding effects. Finally, recent progress and future directions are reviewed for applications of UFG in enhanced bioactivity, synergistic modification, novel food development, value-added utilization of food by-products, and efficacy enhancement of TCM formulations. This review provides a systematic reference for mechanistic elucidation, model prediction, and engineering application of UFG in food systems.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":565,"journal":{"name":"Food Engineering Reviews","volume":"18 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":13.5,"publicationDate":"2026-09-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148926618","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}