VALORIZATION OF THE COCOA HUSK (Theobroma cacao) WITH THE USE OF HIGH PRESSURE TECHNOLOGIES: PROTEIN MODIFICATION, PECTIN EXTRACTION, AND BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS

• Grant number: 24/01659-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: May 01, 2025
• End date: April 30, 2027
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Julian Martínez
• Grantee: Isabela Ferreira Moreno
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia de Alimentos (FEA). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The generation of agro-industrial waste has steadily increased due to the high demand for processed foods. Cocoa husk (Theobroma cacao) (CPH) makes up 67-76% of the fruit and represents the most significant waste product in the chocolate industry. In the context of a circular economy and in line with the UN's 2030 Agenda, it is essential to develop technologies that contribute to the full use of agro-industrial waste, such as CPH, minimizing its environmental impact. CPH contains considerable amounts of protein, pectin, antioxidants, and phenolic compounds with potential applications in the agricultural, food, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical sectors. Therefore, this project aims to valorize CPH using emerging high-pressure technologies to modify the protein fraction and extract pectin and bioactive compounds. To achieve this objective, supercritical "CO" _"2" treatment (SFT) will be carried out for protein modification and pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) will be applied to obtain bioactive compounds and pectin. The best SFT and PLE conditions will be determined, considering the characterization of the products obtained from CPH in physical, chemical, technical and functional terms. The proposed project is expected to contribute to the valorization of the cocoa production chain by developing clean, emerging technologies for processing CPH in a circular economy context.