New Trends in Natural Emulsifiers and Emulsion Technology for the Food Industry

The food industry depends on using different additives, which increases the search for effective natural or natural-derived solutions, to the detriment of the synthetic counterparts, a priority in a biobased and circular economy scenario. In this context, different natural emulsifiers are being studied to create a new generation of emulsion-based products. Among them, phospholipids, saponins, proteins, polysaccharides, biosurfactants (e.g., compounds derived from microbial fermentation), and organic-based solid particles (Pickering stabilizers) are being used or start to gather interest from the food industry. This chapter includes the basic theoretical fundamentals of emulsions technology, stabilization mechanisms, and stability. The preparation of oil-in-water (O/W) and water-in-oil (W/O) emulsions, the potential of double emulsions, and the re-emerging Pickering emulsions are discussed. Moreover, the most relevant natural-derived emulsifier families (e.g., origin, stabilization mechanism, and applications) focusing food applications are presented. The document is grounded in a bibliographic review mainly centered on the last 10-years, and bibliometric data was rationalized and used to better establish the hot topics in the proposed thematic.