Review: Utilization of cellulose in food products

Abstract

Cellulose is one of the most abundant natural materials in the world. It has a long-chain carbohydrate polymer made up of repeating glucose units. Reviewed literature shows that the material has been widely explored as a functional ingredient in foods, including meat products, emulsions, beverages, dairy products, bread, confectionery, and fillings. This carbohydrate polymer has many promising applications in the functional food and nutraceutical industries. Cellulose can be isolated through chemical, mechanical, and biological means to produce a variety of functional materials in the form of cellulose crystals with varying shapes and sizes, including microcrystalline cellulose, micro fibrillated cellulose, nanocrystalline cellulose, nanofibrillated cellulose, and bacterial cellulose, based on its production techniques and sources. This review highlights the utilization and functions of cellulose as a material in food products.