Valorization of Winery By-Products
Summary
The winemaking industry generates substantial volumes of organic residues, including grape pomace, stalks, seeds, skins and lees. Traditionally regarded as waste, these by-products are now recognised as reservoirs of valuable compounds such as polyphenols, dietary fibre, organic acids and proteins. Valorization strategies seek to redirect these residues into high-value applications, thereby closing material loops and reducing environmental impacts. Central to this transformation is the adoption of circular-economy and biorefinery concepts, which integrate sequential processing steps to extract bioactive molecules before converting residual biomass to bioenergy or soil amendments. Advances in extraction technologies—ranging from ultrasound-assisted and pressurised-liquid methods to supercritical fluid extraction—have improved yields of antioxidants and nutraceuticals. Parallel developments in formulation science have enabled incorporation of winery extracts into functional foods, cosmetic ingredients and biopolymer composites. This shift reflects a global imperative for sustainable production, offering economic incentives to producers while contributing to waste minimisation and the achievement of environmental targets.
Research from Nature Portfolio
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Valorization of Winery By-Products publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in valorization of winery by-products across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Circular economy: An economic model that emphasises reuse, recycling and regeneration of materials to minimise waste and resource consumption.
Biorefinery: A facility or process that integrates multiple conversion steps to fractionate biomass into fuels, power and high-value chemicals.
Pomace: The solid residue of grapes after pressing, comprising skins, seeds and stems, rich in polyphenols and dietary fibre.
Polyphenols: A class of naturally occurring antioxidant compounds, including flavonoids and phenolic acids, found in plant tissues.
Bioactive compounds: Chemical constituents that exert biological effects in living systems, such as antioxidant, antimicrobial or anti-inflammatory actions.
Valorization: The process of converting low-value or waste materials into valuable products through chemical, biological or mechanical treatments.
References
- Wine waste valorisation: crushing the research domain. Review of Managerial Science (2024).
- Wine lees as functional ingredient to produce biscuits fortified with polyphenols and dietary fibre. LWT (2024).
- Bioactive Components, Applications, Extractions, and Health Benefits of Winery By-Products from a Circular Bioeconomy Perspective: A Review. Antioxidants (2024).
- Increasing Value of Winery Residues through Integrated Biorefinery Processes: A Review. Molecules (2022).
- Wine By-Products as Raw Materials for the Production of Biopolymers and of Natural Reinforcing Fillers: A Critical Review. Polymers (2021).
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