Concepts for further sustainable production of foods

•Food production has a large impact on environment.•The current set-up of food processes and processing chains is not optimal.•Improvement can occur through avoiding dilution and minimize drying.•Ingredient production should focus on functionality rather than purity. This paper presents an overview of current production methods for food and food ingredients, and describes options for making healthier foods in a more sustainable manner. The current manner of producing food products has a large impact on the environment. Three main causes are responsible for inefficiencies in food production. Those are the increased use of products from animal origin, the inefficient use of food products once produced, resulting in waste generation, and the current set-up of food processes and processing chains. In this paper, we will summarize recent developments and sketch future scenarios for novel designs for food processes and process chains aimed at reduced environmental impact. Future processes can be improved through avoiding dilution and minimize drying, while ingredient production should focus on functionality rather than purity. As a consequence, ingredient production will be tailored for specific applications rather than for general use. The fractionation processes have to become smaller, more flexible and to be placed in the vicinity of the application. Focus on functionality allow the use of milder process conditions during fractionation leading to modern food products with less refined ingredients, which have potential to coincide with a healthier diet.