Consistency of Phenolic Compounds in Plant Residues Parts: A Review of Primary Sources, Key Compounds, and Extraction Trends

Abstract

A significant challenge in valorizing food waste is the accurate extraction and identification of metabolites, as the composition of phenolic compounds varies by plant species, part, growth conditions, and processing. This review examined phenolic compounds in plant residue groups (leaves/stalks, peels/husks, pulp/pomace, and seeds) to verify the predominance of specific compounds in the same plant groups, establishing a comprehensive database. This database may be helpful for future studies that seek sources of a given compound or develop solvents to extract phenolic compounds from a specific material. Moreover, the primary plant residues and trends in extracting and analyzing these compounds were reviewed. The predominance of specific compounds within these groups, such as luteolin in plant leaves and stalks, was observed. Most studies focus on extracts with the highest total phenolic content (TPC), limiting insights into how extraction variables affect the target compounds. Chromatographic methods vary according to sample type, column, and conditions, shifting toward reducing acetone/methanol use, shortening the analysis time, and integrating inline UV-vis detection. This perspective highlights plant residue parts rich in specific phenolics, contributing to more targeted, selective, and sustainable extraction methodologies.

Keywords: fruit waste; inline detections; phenolic compounds networking; selective extraction.

Figure 1

Distribution of the number of documents between 2013 and 2023 using the keywords in the Scopus database: “phenolic AND compounds AND extraction AND residues OR coproducts OR waste OR byproduct”, percentage of publications using the same keywords (green) and percentage using “phenolic AND compounds AND extraction AND plant OR vegetable OR fruit” (orange), and pie chart demonstrating the distribution of searches using the keywords “phenolic AND compounds AND extraction AND residues OR coproducts OR waste OR byproduct AND chromatography AND food leaves” or stalks/peel or husks/pulp or pomace/seeds.

Figure 2

Network analysis of the phenolic compound distribution across different plant parts: Leaves and Stems (LS), Peels and Husk (PH), Pulp and Pomace (PP), and Seeds (S).