Functional foods enriched with melon by products: A sustainable strategy to improve amino acid profile

Silva, M.A.; Costa, H.S.; Oliveira, M.B.P.P.; Félix, N.; Albuquerque, T.G.

http://hdl.handle.net/10400.18/10928

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The global population is projected to grow rapidly, posing a significant challenge in ensuring access to safe, nutritious, and healthy food for everyone. Often discarded, fruit by-products are a valuable source of fiber, protein, and bioactive compounds. Incorporating these by-products into new or enhanced food products could play a crucial role in addressing hunger and malnutrition, which remain major public health challenges. This approach also promotes the sustainable and efficient use of natural resources. This study aimed to develop four innovative types of bread enriched with melon by-products: bread with blanched melon peel flour (BBMPF), bread with blanched melon seed flour (BBMSF), bread with roasted melon peel flour (BRMPF) and bread with roasted melon seed flour (BRMSF). Additionally, a control bread was developed. The protein content and amino acid profile of these breads were evaluated. In 2022, by-products from melon production and distribution companies were recovered. The melon peels were dehydrated, and the seeds were oven-dried. Both by-products were ground to produce melon peel flour and melon seed flour. These flours were then subjected to either blanching or roasting, and used to develop the innovative types of bread. The total protein content was evaluated by Kjeldhal method, and the amino acid profile was determined using UHPLC with diode array detection. Protein content ranged from 6.3 g/100 g (BBMPF) to 8.8 g/100 g (BRMSF). The most abundant essential amino acids found in the breads were leucine, phenylalanine and valine. Breads with melon seed flours have a higher increase in amino acid content than those with melon peel flours. BRMPF (1959 mg/100 g), BBMSF (2219 mg/100 g) and BRMSF (2341 mg/100 g) had higher essential amino acid levels than the control bread (1849 mg/100 g). These results suggest that using melon flour, especially seeds flour, may be an effective strategy to improve the amino acid profile in functional foods. Furthermore, these findings not only contribute to improving public health, but also promote the valorisation of melon by-products, reducing the economic, social, and environmental impacts of these currently discarded by-products, meeting the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.