The Second Life of Citrus Fruit Waste: A Valuable Source of Bioactive Compounds

Abstract

Citrus fruits (CF) are among the most widely cultivated fruit crops throughout the world and their production is constantly increasing along with consumers’ demand. Therefore, huge amounts of waste are annually generated through CF processing, causing high costs for their disposal, as well as environmental and human health damage, if inappropriately performed. According to the most recent indications of an economic, environmental and pharmaceutical nature, CF processing residues must be transformed from a waste to be disposed to a valuable resource to be reused. Based on a circular economy model, CF residues (i.e., seeds, exhausted peel, pressed pulp, secondary juice and leaves) have increasingly been re-evaluated to also obtain, but not limited to, valuable compounds to be employed in the food, packaging, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. However, the use of CF by-products is still limited because of their underestimated nutritional and economic value, hence more awareness and knowledge are needed to overcome traditional approaches for their disposal. This review summarizes recent evidence on the pharmacological potential of CF waste to support the switch towards a more environmentally sustainable society.

Chemical Compositions and Antioxidant Activities of Essential Oils, and Their Combinations, Obtained from Flavedo By-Product of Seven Cultivars of Sicilian Citrus aurantium L.

“…The wastes deriving from Citrus processing (peels and seeds in primis) are an important part, and various papers have shown that by recycling and using these parts, bioactive compounds such as flavonoids, limonoids, terpenoids, and minerals can be obtained [ 9 , 10 , 11 ].…”

Valorization of Persimmon Fruit Through the Development of New Food Products

“…The named linear model is based on that inherited from the industrial revolution under the concept of constant supply of products with a short useful life, compelling to produce more to satisfy the continuous needs of the consumers (Osorio et al, 2021). Regarding foods, and according to the FAO, most losses and waste come from fruits and vegetables, accounting for ≈50%; most waste results from consuming fresh fruit and their industrial processing (Russo et al, 2021). Therefore, the circular economy has received considerable interest in the scientific field.…”

Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction, Chemical Characterization, and Impact on Cell Viability of Food Wastes Derived from Southern Italy Autochthonous Citrus Fruits

“…In the food industry, citrus wastes have been used as new additives, which showed sourness, bitterness, and orange-like taste, and overall acceptance similar to commercially citrus-flavored drinks [ 20 ]. In this field, it has been shown that citrus wastes (particularly peels and pomaces) are intriguing sources of limonoids and fatty acids [ 21 ]. Nevertheless, the literature did not report concise information about the three different types of citrus from southern Italy, that are “Limone di Rocca Imperiale”, “Arancia Rossa Moro”, and “Arancia Bionda di Trebisacce”.…”