Recovery of high-added-value compounds from food waste by membrane technology

The recovery of high-added-value compounds from food processing by-products is currently an important challenge. In this line, membrane technologies such as ultrafiltration (UF) and nanofiltration (NF) have proved to be effective tools when combined because of their advantages (ie, high selectivity and low energy requirement) against other separation methods. Indeed, UF membranes are capable of separating, recovering, and concentrating macromolecules of relatively high molecular weight (MW) from aqueous systems, whereas NF membranes are capable of selectively fractionating, recovering, and concentrating micromolecules of low and fine nominal MW. Both technologies have been investigated for recovering valuable compounds such as fibers, pectin, sugars, proteins, and phenolic and antioxidant components from agrofood waste. The current chapter provides a complete overview concerning their implementation for the recovery of high-added-value compounds from different food waste streams and extracts.