AUTHOR=Moreira Catarina , Ferreira-Santos Pedro , Teixeira José António , Rocha Cristina M. R. 

TITLE=Active aroma compounds assessment of processed and non-processed micro- and macroalgae by solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry targeting seafood analogs

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems

VOLUME=Volume 6 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sustainable-food-systems/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2022.1011020

DOI=10.3389/fsufs.2022.1011020

ISSN=2571-581X

ABSTRACT=The odor of four algae was investigated and compared to evaluate these algae's potential to mimic shrimp aroma. Solid-phase microextraction followed by gas chromatography analysis coupled with sensory analysis was used for performance assessment. The volatile organic compounds were determined in non-processed, raw samples (r), and processed - cooked (c) and cooking water (w) samples, for two microalgae: Nannochoropsis oceanica (NO), Tetraselmis chuii (TC), and two macroalgae: Ulva rígida (UR), Saccharina latíssima (SL), and shrimp Vannamei cong (SH).
The results showed significant differences in the volatile compounds composition between macro-and microalgae. The key odorants in macroalgae were octanal, 2-octenal, nonanal and β-ionone, and in microalgae 1,5-octadien-3-ol, hexanal, 2,4-decadienal, 2-octenal, octanal, nonanal, 3,5-octadien-2-one, and terpenes. The PCA analysis of GC-MS data showed odor similarities between the studied samples, divided into five main groups: 1) TC(c), and TC(w); 2) TC(r), and NO(c); 3) NO(r), NO(w), and SL(w); 4) SL(c), UR(r), UR(c), UR(w); and 5) SL(r). The data from sensory analysis show bigger similarities between the macroalgae and the shrimp odor. Overall, the data provided indicate that the cooking water and cooked samples are very similar in key odorants composition.
These features allow the possibility to use algae and their processed-resulting products as a shrimp flavor replacement in non-animal-based food formulations thus decreasing the pressure on seafood crops and aquaculture-associated issues leading to more sustainable livestock’s. Further, circularity and waste reduction may be further enabled by the use of otherwise wasted cooking water as an odorant agent.