Chestnut Cultivar Identification through the Data Fusion of Sensory Quality and FT-NIR Spectral Data

Comparative analysis of quality, structural, and flavor alterations in chestnuts (Castanea mollissima Blume) subjected to different thermal processing techniques

This study investigated the effects of three thermal processing methods-steaming (100 °C), air frying (150 °C), and roasting (200 °C)-on the quality, structure, and flavor profiles of two chestnut (Castanea mollissima Blume) varieties, Dabanhong and Yanshanzaofeng. Nutritional composition, bioactive compounds, crystallinity, texture, color, and taste were assessed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), texture profile analysis (TPA), and an electronic tongue (E-tongue). Specifically, TPA effectively identified roasted chestnuts, while the E-tongue further distinguished steamed from air-fried chestnuts. Sensory evaluation was conducted with 110 participants, and principal component analysis (PCA) was used to correlate sensory attributes with physicochemical properties. Air frying preserved nutrients effectively, achieved the highest relative crystallinity, and improved sensory qualities by reducing hardness and undesirable flavors. Dabanhong chestnuts air-fried at 150 °C emerged as the optimal combination, balancing both nutritional and sensory attributes. These findings provide actionable insights for optimizing chestnut thermal processing to enhance consumer satisfaction and product quality.

NIR Sensing Technologies for the Detection of Fraud in Nuts and Nut Products: A Review

Food fraud is a major threat to the integrity of the nut supply chain. Strategies using a wide range of analytical techniques have been developed over the past few years to detect fraud and to assure the quality, safety, and authenticity of nut products. However, most of these techniques present the limitations of being slow and destructive and entailing a high cost per analysis. Nevertheless, near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and NIR imaging techniques represent a suitable non-destructive alternative to prevent fraud in the nut industry with the advantages of a high throughput and low cost per analysis. This review collects and includes all major findings of all of the published studies focused on the application of NIR spectroscopy and NIR imaging technologies to detect fraud in the nut supply chain from 2018 onwards. The results suggest that NIR spectroscopy and NIR imaging are suitable technologies to detect the main types of fraud in nuts.

Sweet Chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.) Nutritional and Phenolic Composition Interactions with Chestnut Flavor Physiology

The European chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.), is an environmentally and economically important species in Europe, mainly for fruit production. The chestnut fruit is well-known for its nutritional properties, namely its high concentration of carbohydrates (starch) and its low-fat content, as well as being one of the few fruits that do not contain gluten. Due to its chemical and nutritional characteristics beneficial to health, the sweet chestnut is a food recommended at different levels. The biochemistry of the mouth and nose of a human being is very complex. However, understanding the different interactions between the biochemistry of our sensory organs and food helps us to comprehend certain concepts, such as flavor and how it is involved in the sensory evaluation of the chestnuts. For the selection of high-quality products, it is necessary to develop reliable methods both from a qualitative and sensory point of view, and chestnut is a fruit with unique sensory characteristics that can be used in various gastronomic dishes, from main courses to desserts.

Challenges and Opportunities of Implementing Data Fusion in Process Analytical Technology-A Review

The release of the FDA's guidance on Process Analytical Technology has motivated and supported the pharmaceutical industry to deliver consistent quality medicine by acquiring a deeper understanding of the product performance and process interplay. The technical opportunities to reach this high-level control have considerably evolved since 2004 due to the development of advanced analytical sensors and chemometric tools. However, their transfer to the highly regulated pharmaceutical sector has been limited. To this respect, data fusion strategies have been extensively applied in different sectors, such as food or chemical, to provide a more robust performance of the analytical platforms. This survey evaluates the challenges and opportunities of implementing data fusion within the PAT concept by identifying transfer opportunities from other sectors. Special attention is given to the data types available from pharmaceutical manufacturing and their compatibility with data fusion strategies. Furthermore, the integration into Pharma 4.0 is discussed.

Phytochemical and Nutritional Profile Composition in Fruits of Different Sweet Chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.) Cultivars Grown in Romania

Chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.), a valuable fruit crop, is cultivated in small areas in Romania, mostly in the west, where the moderate continental climate has a slight Mediterranean influence. This work aims to investigate the bioactive characteristics (total polyphenols, total flavonoids and antioxidant activity), individual polyphenolic composition, phytochemical and nutritional HRMS screening profiles, sugar and mineral composition of six sweet chestnut cultivars, namely ‘Marsol’, ‘Maraval’, ‘Bournette’, ‘Précoce Migoule’ and ‘Marissard’ grown at Fruit Growing Research—Extension Station (SCDP) Vâlcea, in Northern Oltenia, Romania. Fruit samples were collected in two consecutive years, in order to study the impact of genetic variability between cultivars and the influence of the different climatic conditions corresponding to different cultivation years. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) allow the discrimination between the sweet chestnut fruits harvested in different years and different sweet chestnut cultivars. Analytical investigations revealed that sweet chestnut cultivars grown in Romania show similar bioactive, phytochemical and nutritional composition to cultivars grown in the large European chestnut-producing countries, indicating the high adaptation potential of the chestnut in the temperate continental zone with small Mediterranean influences characteristic of the southwestern area of Romania.