Physical approaches for the delivery of active ingredients in foods

Encapsulation systems in food applications are typically employed to solve formulation problems arising from a limited chemical or physical stability of the active ingredient, an incompatibility between active ingredient and food matrix, or to control the release of a sensorially active compound or the bioavailability of a nutrient. However, the use of encapsulation systems in complex food matrices often fails because their application is mostly based on trial and error. The present article introduces a conceptually new approach in which the target application is analyzed based on physical principles, including materials science, physical chemistry and biophysics in order to develop a range of solution strategies from which the most promising may be selected for final application. The approach is illustrated with two case studies on the stability of active ingredients in glassy carbohydrates.