Cocoa By-Products: Characterization of Bioactive Compounds and Beneficial Health Effects

Abstract

The annual production of cocoa is approximately 4.7 million tons of cocoa beans, of which only 10% corresponds to the cocoa bean and the remaining value corresponds to a high number of residues, cocoa bean shell, pulp and husk. These by-products are a source of nutrients and compounds of notable interest in the food industry as possible ingredients, or even additives. The assessment of such by-products is relevant to the circular economy at both environmental and economic levels. Investigations carried out with these by-products have shown that cocoa husk can be used for the production of useful chemicals such as ketones, carboxylic acids, aldehydes, furans, heterocyclic aromatics, alkylbenzenes, phenols and benzenediols, as well as being efficient for the removal of lead from acidic solutions, without decay in the process due to the other metals in this matrix. The fibre present in the cocoa bean shell has a considerable capacity to adsorb a large amount of oil and cholesterol, thus reducing its bioavailability during the digestion process, as well as preventing lipid oxidation in meats, with better results compared to synthetic antioxidants (butylated hydroxytoluene and β-tocopherol). Finally, cocoa pulp can be used to generate a sweet and sour juice with a natural flavour. Thus, this review aimed to compile information on these by-products, focusing mainly on their chemical and nutritional composition, simultaneously, the various uses proposed in the literature based on a bibliographic review of articles, books and theses published between 2000 and 2021, using databases such as Scopus, Web of Science, ScieLO, PubMed and ResearchGate.

Changes in bioactive compounds present in beef burgers formulated with walnut oil gelled emulsion as a fat substitute during in vitro gastrointestinal digestion

“…There is a growing body of evidence that bioactive compounds (polyphenolic compounds and methylxanthines) found in cocoa and cocoa co‐products are beneficial to human health 39 . However, these health effects depend very much on the bioaccessibility and bioavailability of these bioactive compounds in the digestive tract as well as in the circulatory system.…”

“…There is a growing body of evidence that bioactive compounds (polyphenolic compounds and methylxanthines) found in cocoa and cocoa co-products are beneficial to human health. 39 However, these health effects depend very much on the bioaccessibility and bioavailability of these bioactive compounds in the digestive tract as well as in the circulatory system. The bioactive compounds found in the bound fraction that are not released in the intestinal phase may also reach the colon intact and will be metabolized by the intestinal microbiome.…”

Simple and reliable eco‐extraction of bioactive compounds from dark chocolate by Deep Eutectic Solvents. A sustainable study

“…Cocoa and cocoa‐based products (i.e., chocolate) have unique sensory characteristics, whose remarkable nutritional properties have been widely exploited by dieticians and food technologists (Indiarto et al ., 2021). It is worth noting that cocoa is constituted of about 600 different bioactive compounds, among which polyphenols and alkaloids represent the two main classes, responsible for health and quality‐promoting effects on the human organism (Godočiková et al ., 2020; Soares et al ., 2022). However, these BCs not only determine the quality of the cocoa derivatives, but also are responsible for the psychoactive properties of food products; focusing on polyphenols, these arouse interest for their antioxidant, anti‐inflammatory, and antitumor activity, as well as for their ability to inhibit pathological processes (Martini et al ., 2018).…”

Effect of cocoa pulp as a coating for fresh eggs in terms of physical and chemical qualities during storage period

“…Cocoa pulp is one of the by-products of cocoa bean processing which is rich in polysaccharides and other compounds that can be used as edible film or coating materials. Soares [10] reported from various research results that 100 g of dry weight of cocoa pulp contains 20.80-57.50 g of cellulose; 7.00-17.00 g hemicellulose; 12.00-14.60 g lignin; 0.57-1.50 g pectin; 0.41-5.56 g protein and 1.91-3.54 g fat.…”