Technological Challenges in Enzymatically Produced Functional Foods

Purpose of Review The role and importance of biocatalysis in the production and modification of functional food and its ingredients have been discussed. The challenges in the field and future scope have been highlighted. Recent Findings The incorporation of advanced synthetic biology and computational tools with recent research developments in food biotechnology has led to a better understanding of the mechanism of health benefits of functional foods. Studies at the molecular level are still a potential area of future research. Summary The challenges in this area are limited knowledge about the structure and functionality of the enzymes and their reaction mechanism. Efforts should be directed towards the expansion of unrevealed aspects of the biocatalytic toolbox, to reduce the production and downstream operations costs and improve the low yields of the products. Alternative substrates with higher efficiency should be explored. Cutting-edge research is required in nanotechnology for the identification of food-grade, non-toxic nanoparticles for increasing the bioavailability of functional food ingredients for health benefits.