Plant food wastes generated through the food chain have attracted increasing attention over the last few years not only due to critical environmental and economic issues but also as an available source of valuable components such as dietary fibers. However, the exploitation of plant waste remains limited due to the lack of appropriate processing technologies to recover and tailor fiber functionalities. Among the different technologies developed for waste valorization, mechanical techniques were suggested to be a promising and sustainable strategy to extract fibers with improved functionalities. In this context, the present review describes different mechanical technologies (conventional and innovative) with potential applications to produce micro/nanofibers from various plant residues, highlighting the operating principle as well as the main advantages and pitfalls. The impact on the structural, technological, and functional properties of fibrous materials is comprehensively discussed. The extent of fiber modification not only highly depended on the technology and operation conditions used but also on fiber composition and the application of posttreatments such as dehydration. Other variables, including economic and environmental issues such as equipment cost, energy demand, and eco-friendly features, are also reviewed. The outputs of this review can be used by both the industrial sector and academia to select a suitable combination of fiber and processing technology for designing novel foods with improved functionalities that fulfill market trends and consumer needs.
Keywords: defibrillation technology; dietary fibers; food waste valorization; functionality; mechanical treatment; nanofibers; sustainability.
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