ABSTRACT
New technologies are introduced in all manufacturing sectors each and every day due to the growing research and development in many fields of science and engineering. Nanotechnology is one of the major emerging technologies in recent times, and the applications of nanoscience and nanotechnology in all manufacturing sectors are growing faster day by day. Nanotechnology-based food products and processes have been developed in order to: improve the physicochemical, organoleptic, and nutritional properties of food products, increase the nutritional availability, increase the shelf life of food products, and improve the quality of food products. Nanotechnology-based materials and processes help the food and beverages industry to improve the functionalities of the food and also to reduce the use of chemical substances since the higher surface-to-mass ratio nature of nanomaterials provides similar kinds of functionalities as the large amount of regular-size materials (Amenta et al. 2015; Chaudhry et al. 2010). The food and beverages industry is facing a major obstacle in winning the consumers’ acceptance of the nanotechnology-based food and beverage products since the application of nanotechnology in food and beverages is directly related to the consumers’ health due to direct consumption of these products. The higher surface-area-to-mass ratio of nanomaterials is also playing a negative role in public perception about nanotechnology-based food products because the higher ratio may increase the absorbance of the nanomaterials through the organ tissues, which may cause cell damage, and consumer may 280receive overdose of the nutrients due to the increased bioavailability (Amenta et al. 2015; Couch et al. 2016; Martirosyan and Schneider 2014; NIOSH 2009).
