Consumer Studies Focus on Prebiotics, Probiotics, and Synbiotics in Food Packaging: a Review

Abstract

Purpose of Review Dietary consumption of prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics has been suggested to improve human health conditions. Functional food products containing live probiotics are flourishing, and their demand seems to be increasing since consumers are more aware of the health benefits of such products. However, specific food packaging is needed to maintain the viability and stability of these products, hence, necessitating advanced technology and processing. This study intends to give academics and industry an overview of food packaging evaluations that concentrate on prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics for consumers to gain a wide and clear image. Recent Findings This review provides recent findings from the consumer point of view on the prebiotics, probiotics, or synbiotics incorporated in food packaging based on consumer behavior models. Additionally, various obstacles in the preparation of packing film or coating added with biotics are identified and described. The health benefits of prebiotics-, probiotics-, or synbiotics-containing edible film or coating are also discussed. Future works needed to excel in the preparation and potential of packaging film or coatings with biotics are provided. Summary The development of prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics in food packaging is discussed in this study from the consumer’s point of view. With this review, it is hoped to be able to provide precise recommendations for the future development of food packaging that will promote the growth of the food business.

The Networked Interaction between Probiotics and Intestine in Health and Disease: A Promising Success Story

“…inflammation [44,45]. The idea behind this approach is that by combining different types of beneficial bacteria and food ingredients, an environment is created in the gut that supports the growth of beneficial microorganisms, reduces inflammation, and helps maintain a healthy microbiome [44][45][46].…”

“…In this review article, new trends in probiotics and novel methods of treatment are addressed, and recommendations for the future are proposed. Mixed approaches, which combine probiotics and prebiotics, are called synbiotics ( Table 1 ) and have shown promising results in reducing gut inflammation [ 44 , 45 ]. The idea behind this approach is that by combining different types of beneficial bacteria and food ingredients, an environment is created in the gut that supports the growth of beneficial microorganisms, reduces inflammation, and helps maintain a healthy microbiome [ 44 , 45 , 46 ].…”

Probiotics for oral health: a critical evaluation of bacterial strains

“…Probiotic products sold to consumers must meet multiple manufacturing and consumer requirements that are rarely considered during the strain isolation stage. Manufacturing considerations including strain yield, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), absence of contaminants, product consistency, and product stability across varying temperatures and humidity are critical to a successful probiotic product ( Fenster et al, 2019 ) while consumer preferences may include shelf-life, ease-of-use, and sustainability ( Siddiqui et al, 2023 ). Additionally, probiotic candidate strains may be patented for specific uses or in specific combinations, which may limit the use of the probiotic candidate strain (s) to individual companies or designated dosage forms.…”