ABSTRACT
This chapter refers to the processes for producing high-value products based on bioactives which are isolated from agroindustrial wastes. The current trend of research and development for utilisation of agricultural and food processing waste as a source for value-added bio-based product focuses on recovery of compounds by using conventional and emerging technologies, biotransformation of compounds by means of enzymes or whole cells to obtain analogues with higher value, and development of bioprocesses using microorganisms for the production of bioactive compounds. The extraction of bioactive components from various plant materials is continuously updated and emerging technologies, such as microwave and pressure- accelerated extraction techniques that gained popularity in the last decade, also attracted the interest of scientists working on tomato lycopene. The challenge for agricultural and food production waste valorization into higher added-value products rather than feed, fertilizers and energy has attracted the interest of researchers and industry and urged the EU towards a zero-waste economy by 2025.
