Phenolics in Foods: Extraction, Analysis and Measurements

The increasing consumers demands to acquire healthier fruits and vegetables as well as the urgency in looking to natural compounds with antioxidant activity and enhanced antimicrobial activity against antibiotic-resistant pathogenic bacterial strains have encouraged a quick expansion of research studies about enhanced phenolic extraction and identification methods. Considering the importance of phenolics as natural compounds with antioxidant and antimicrobial activity, this chapter aims to present the most updated information about extraction methods, ranging from the traditional to the most advanced processes, as well as the access to the modern methods used in the identification and quantification of phenolics. The main goal of this chapter is to provide the reader with a broad view on the different protocols used to extract, identify and quantify phenolic compounds from different kinds of foods, including fruits and vegetables.