Food quality refers to the characteristics of food that make it acceptable for consumers. The quality parameters include a wide range starting from physical characteristics, such as appearance, taste, and flavor, to the cost, nutritional value, and shelf-life of foods. Major emphasis is put on the macromolecules of foods during processing, while often micromolecules, importantly phenolic compounds (polyphenols), are neglected. Although they occur in small quantities, a plethora of literature is available on their extraction, analysis, purification, and utilization to develop functional food products.

Phenolic compounds are secondary metabolites of plants containing antioxidant properties, which help us to protect from chronic diseases triggered via free radical damage. They are the subject of enhancing scientific interest due to their possible beneficial effects on human health. There are over 9000 phenolic compounds identified in nature and found largely in fruits, vegetables, tea, coffee, chocolates, legumes, cereals, and beverages. Generally, phenolic compounds are classified into two major classes: flavonoids and nonflavonoids. The latter include structurally simple molecules, such as phenolic acids (hydroxybenzoic acids and hydroxycinnamic acids) and stilbenes, and highly complex molecules, such as stilbene oligomers, tannins, and lignins. Indeed, most of phenolic compounds are heat-sensitive and easily degraded during processing under diverse conditions.

This special issue encourages the submission of high-quality research and review manuscripts, covering the recent advances on investigation of phenolic compounds as one of the quality parameters in food products.

Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:

• Extraction, analysis, and purification of phenolic compounds from plant sources with the objective of improving the quality of food products
• Impact of novel food processing technologies on the profile of phenolic compounds
• Food product development highlighting phenolic compounds as quality indicators
• Evaluation of the stability of phenolic compounds under different processing and/or storage conditions
• Implementation of new techniques to ensure targeted delivery of bioactive compounds into the human body