Some agricultural industries generate large amounts of low value co-products/residues, including citrus peel, sugar beet
pulp and whey protein from the production of orange juice, sugar and cheese commodities, respectively. National
Program #306 of the USDA Agricultural Research Service aims to characterize and enhance quality and develop new
processes and uses for value-added foods and bio-based products. In parallel projects, we applied scanning microscopies
to examine the molecular organization of citrus pectin gels, covalent crosslinking to reduce debonding in sugar beet
pulp-PLA composites and functional modification of whey protein through extrusion in order to evaluate new methods
of processing and formulating new products. Also, qualitative attributes of fresh produce that could potentially guide
germ line development and crop management were explored through fluorescence imaging: synthesis and accumulation
of oleoresin in habanero peppers suggest a complicated mechanism of secretion that differs from the classical scheme.
Integrated imaging appears to offer significant structural insights to help understand practical properties and features of
important food co-products/residues.
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