Innovative approach to develop value-added snack products through extrusion technology

Project manager: Professor PhD. Eng. Silvia MIRONEASA

Senior researchers: Professor PhD. Eng. Georgiana Gabriela CODINA

Senior researchers: Professor PhD. Eng. Costel MIRONEASA

Postdoctoral researchers: Professor PhD. Eng. Mircea-Adrian OROIAN

Scientific research assistant: PhD. Eng. Mădălina UNGUREANU-IUGA

PhD. Students: Eng. Ionica COŢOVANU (VERNICEANU)

Eng. Ana BATARIUC

The Romanian market of extruded products, such as snacks, is continuously growing even during the recent economic situation, because these products are easy to eat and represent an attractive alternative to bakery products. The major component of snacks is starch, an easily digestible carbohydrate, which make these products to be high glycemic index food, their consumption being considered to play an important role in the occurrence of many metabolic disorders. Trough the proposed project theme, we want to capitalize grape pomace by using extrusion technology to enhance snacks production sustainability and to contribute to a lower ecological impact.

The concrete objectives of the projects are as follows:

O1. Physico-chemical characteristics, molecular characterization and functional properties of grape pomace and maize flour used as raw materials

O2. Feed mixture preparation, physico-chemical characteristics, molecular characterization and functional properties

O3. Testing, establishing the extrusion conditions (processing parameters and system parameters) of formulated mixtures and performed extrusion

O4. Evaluation of the new snacks’ quality characteristics

O5. Complex evaluation of the new snack product obtained after optimization process

Articles published in indexed journals and under evaluation in journals indexed in international databases

1. Mironeasa, S., Coţovanu, I., Mironeasa, C., & *Ungureanu-Iuga, M. (2023). A Review of the Changes Produced by Extrusion Cooking on the Bioactive Compounds from Vegetal Sources. Antioxidants, 12(7), 1453. Impact factor: 7, Q1. https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3921/12/7/1453
2. Coţovanu, I., Mironeasa S., Ungureanu-Iuga, M., Mironeasa, C. (2023). Effect of extrusion parameters on the extruded products’ features. International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference: SGEM, 2023 – Full Article for Peer Review: 8_32387_ARTPEER1_2023_11_11_10_47.doc

International Conference Participations

4^th International Conference on Food Bioactives and Health, Prague, Czech Republic, 18-21 September, 2023

1. Mironeasa, S., Ungureanu-Iuga, M., Batariuc, A., Coţovanu, I., Mironeasa, C. (2023). The impact of two different drying methods on the polyphenolic content and antioxidant activity of grape pomace
2. Mironeasa, C., Batariuc, A., Ungureanu-Iuga, M., Coţovanu, I., Mironeasa, S. (2023). Functional properties of grape pomace used in the extrusion process

Abstract Book at: https://fbhc2023.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/fbh2023-abstract-book-a4-r49-FINAL-25-09-2023.pdf

3^rdFood Chemistry Conference: Shaping a Healthy and Sustainable Food Chain through Knowledge, Dresden, Germany, 10-12 October 2023

1. Mironeasa, S., Batariuc, A., Coţovanu, I., Codină, G.G., Mironeasa, C. (2023). Grape pomace characterization for future valorization in extruded snacks
2. Mironeasa, C., Ungureanu-Iuga, M., Oroian, M.-A., Mironeasa, S. (2023). Use of ATR-FTIR spectroscopy technique for the estimation of grape pomace compounds https://virtual.oxfordabstracts.com/#/event/public/1683/people

XXIII^rd SGEM GeoConference – “Green Science for Green Life”, International Scientific Conference on Earth and Planetary Sciences SGEM, Schönbrunn Palace, Vienna Austria, 28 Nov – 1 Dec, 2023

1. Batariuc, A., Mironeasa, S., Ungureanu-Iuga, M., Mironeasa, C. (2023). Characterization of maize flour-grape pomace mixtures for snack production | https://www.sgemviennagreen.org/program1/my_halls_day2_list.php?qs=Batariuc&tab=HALL1
2. Coţovanu, I., Mironeasa, S., Ungureanu-Iuga, M., Mironeasa, C. (2023). Effect of extrusion parameters on the extruded products’ features | https://www.sgemviennagreen.org/program1/my_halls_day3_list.php?qs=Cotovanu&tab=HALL1

The 9^th Edition of the International Conference BIOTECHNOLOGIES, PRESENT AND PERSPECTIVES, 15^th of December 2023

1. Mironeasa, S., Batariuc, A., *Ungureanu-Iuga, M., (2023). Assessment of the fiber content of grape pomace-maize flour mixtures used to produce high-fiber snacks­ – accepted for presentation, https://fiajournal.usv.ro/conference2023/#

Workshop Participations

1. Mironeasa S. (2023). Extrusion technology in food processing. Current Trends in Research and Dissemination of Results in the Field Food, “Ştefan cel Mare” University of Suceava, Faculty of Food Engineering, Suceava, Romania. https://fia.usv.ro/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2023/03/Workshop-25-martie-2023-Program.pdf
2. Coţovanu (Verniceanu) I., Mironeasa S. (2023). Grape pomace as a fiber source in extruded products. Sustainable Food: Trends and Opportunities, “Ştefan cel Mare” University of Suceava, Faculty of Food Engineering, Suceava, Romania. https://fia.usv.ro/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2023/10/Program-Workshop-Sustainable.pdf