Scale-up analysis and critical issues of an experimental pilot plant for edible film production using agricultural waste processing

This study was developed to test a multifunctional experimental pilot plant with a reduced environmental impact that is able to process agricultural (fennel) and food production (liquid whey) waste. The pilot plant, using different thermal and filtration process parameters, is able to recover pectin and whey proteins in a single processing unit in order to produce edible films. An innovative feature of the proposed configuration is related to the possibility of coupling different types of waste treatment, obtaining a final product with a higher economical value, combining the two processing lines. Although an edible film production procedure based on pectin extracted from fennel matrix and whey proteins has already been published in literature, the scale-up process highlighted several critical issues, in particular related to the fennel matrix. Nonetheless, the pilot plant configuration allowed an edible film to be produced that is suitable for use as a direct coating to improve the shelf-life of food products.