Potential and prospects for utilization of avocado by-products in integrated biorefineries

Abstract

The industrial processing of avocado to extract oil, and produce guacamole or sauces generates enormous quantities of peels and seeds (around 2 million tons worldwide in 2019) without commercially valuable applications. However, various studies have suggested the presence of a wide range of interesting compounds in the composition of these by-products. This review depicts a thorough outline of the capacity of avocado residues to be converted into a portfolio of commodities that can be employed in sectors such as the food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, environment, and energy industries. Therefore, a novel biorefinery strategy to valorize avocado-processing residues to obtain a polyphenolic extract, pectooligosaccharides, and succinic acid was presented. Additionally, the prospects and challenges facing a biorefinery based on the valorization of avocado residues are presented, particularly its techno-economic feasibility on an industrial scale, aiming for a resource-efficient circular bio-economy.

Keywords: Antioxidant phenolics; Biorefinery; Circular economy; Pectooligosaccharides; Succinic acid.