Food ingredients and food made with plant cell and tissue cultures: State‐of‐the art and future trends

Abstract

Climate change and an increasing world population means traditional farming methods may not be able to meet the anticipated growth in food demands. Therefore, alternative agricultural strategies should be considered. Here, plant cell and tissue cultures (PCTCs) may present a possible solution, as they allow for controlled, closed and sustainable manufacturing of extracts which have been or are still being used as colorants or health food ingredients today. In this review we would like to highlight developments and the latest trends concerning commercial PCTC extracts and their use as food ingredients or even as food. The commercialization of PCTC‐derived products, however, requires not only regulatory approval, but also outstanding product properties or/and a high product titer. If these challenges can be met, PCTCs will become increasingly important for the food sector in coming years.

Cell‐cultivated food production and processing: A review

“…In vitro plant cell and tissue culture (PCTC) can be used to produce food ingredients and materials. Gubser et al (2021) mentioned that PCTC could represent a solution for the production of food to overcome the negative effects of climate change on the production of food in traditional agricultural methods. However, the commercialization of PCTC requires regulations and standardization of product properties.…”

“…While PCTC has been commercially applied for commercial production of secondary metabolites such as paclitaxel (an anticancer drug) since the 1980s, the application of PCTC to produce food products is a relatively recent development (Rischer et al, 2020). In addition, most known applications of PCTC for food ingredients have focused on the production of natural food colorants (e.g., anthocyanins, betacyanins, shikonins), antioxidants, betalains, sweeteners, and aroma and flavor compounds such as vanillin (Davies & Deroles, 2014; Gubser et al, 2021). Powders and extracts produced from whole‐cell suspensions are currently marketed as nutraceutical and cosmetic ingredients for various plant species including Echinacea sp.…”

“…Powders and extracts produced from whole‐cell suspensions are currently marketed as nutraceutical and cosmetic ingredients for various plant species including Echinacea sp. and ginseng (Eibl et al, 2018; Georgiev et al, 2018; Gubser et al, 2021).…”

“…The production costs of PCTC have so far mostly limited its applications to high‐value markets such as biopharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, and cosmetics (Section 5.4, Table 2) but further technological advancements in production and processing may enable more food‐related applications in the future. As with other cell‐cultivated foods, applications in high‐value “luxury food” markets or products of novelty or environmental/social importance (e.g., chocolate or coffee) may prove the most economically feasible initially (Eibl et al, 2018; Gubser et al, 2021; Rischer et al, 2020).…”

Impact of Artificial Polyploidization in Ajuga reptans on Content of Selected Biologically Active Glycosides and Phytoecdysone

“…Although some researchers have attempted to obtain the abovementioned substances from in vitro or cell suspension cultures [7,10], breeding programs could provide new genotypes for field production and biomass harvesting. This study aimed to address how artificial tetraploids of Ajuga reptans obtained from previous experiments differ from wild progenitor plants, in terms of the contents of three important substances: trans-teupolioside, trans-verbascoside, and 20-hydroxyecdysone.…”