Bee pollen as a functional ingredient in artisanal breads: physicochemical and sensorial contribution

Abstract

A healthy lifestyle leads to a situation in which several people begin to take care of their health. People look for products with higher quality, with health benefits, rich in vitamins, bioactive compounds, bioelements, and valuable nutrients. In this context, bee pollen, which is rich in functional components, can meet these expectations when added to processed products, thus being better suited for use as an ingredient in the food industry. The bakery sector has grown in the food industry, especially the one focused on the production of artisan or rustic bread, with the claim of being "more natural" or "healthier", since it does not contain synthetic additives in its composition. In this way, natural fermentation breads have gained market and captivated a part of the population more concerned with a healthy lifestyle. In view of this, we believe that ensuring an adequate supply of functional and beneficial compounds to human health in processed/industrialized products is important to assist in the development of the bakery sector. Thus, we propose to study the addition of bee pollen to burger-type breads, in order to analyze their technological, physical-chemical and sensorial characteristics.