Valorization of fruit and vegetables agro-wastes for the sustainable production of carotenoid-based colorants with enhanced bioavailability

Carotenoids are pigments naturally occurring in fruits and vegetables, and responsible for their yellow to red colors. They also have several bioactive properties, making them interesting alternatives to the artificial colorants commonly used in the food industry. This review compiles an updated research progress about green production of carotenoid-based colorants focusing on the benefits associated with their sustainable extraction from agro-wastes, also considering the environmental aspects associated to the processes. Taking into account the hydrophobic nature of carotenoids and their susceptibility to degradation when exposed to technological and/or storage conditions (e.g., light, heat, and oxygen), protecting strategies based on nanotechnological approaches were presented as tools to avoid degradation and thus, retain the bioactive properties. Additionally, the effect of such nanotechnological strategies on carotenoids bioaccessibility and bioavailability was reviewed and discussed. Finally, the health-related properties of carotenoids that make them promising candidates to be used not only as functional food ingredients but also in therapeutic applications and in the nutraceutical and cosmeceutical industries were also considered.