Edible Applications

Consumers are becoming more conscious of the lifestyle-health relationship and, therefore, are moving toward a healthier diet. Nowadays, the decision to select food products is strongly linked to their nutritional characteristics, but without neglecting their sensory attributes and cost. Increased awareness of the diseases associated with excessive consumption of saturated and trans fats is driving scientific and technological advances in the development, innovation, and/or reformulation of foods based on fat-mimicking structures such as oleogels and derived products. However, reducing saturated fat content requires the evaluation of the complete formulation-processing-consumption system, to avoid negatively altering product textural, sensory, and stability characteristics, as well as consumer acceptability and other nutritional aspects. Up until today, oleogel-based systems have been proposed for a variety of food applications—spreads, bakery, meat, and dairy products, among others—primarily aimed at reducing saturated fat content and increasing the amount of healthy components, including unsaturated fatty acids, provided through the use of various vegetable oils. In addition, other relevant food applications with technological purposes are being extensively researched. This chapter provides an overview of the most relevant aspects and current findings in technological and nutritional applications of oleogel-based systems, while attempting to identify upcoming challenges and tendencies.