Encapsulation of food bioactive compounds using electrohydrodynamic techniques: from fundamentals to industrial applications

The encapsulation of food bioactive compounds has gained significant attention as a strategy to improve their stability, bioavailability, and controlled release for functional food applications. Among emerging technologies, electrohydrodynamic (EHD) techniques—primarily electrospinning and electrospraying, offer unique advantages over conventional encapsulation approaches due to their ability to generate nanostructured carriers with high surface area, tunable porosity, and protective matrices under mild processing conditions. This manuscript provides a comprehensive overview of the fundamentals and industrial relevance of EHD-based encapsulation systems, highlighting the influence of processing parameters, solvent selection, and polymer–bioactive interactions on nanostructure morphology and performance. The review discusses the encapsulation of diverse bioactive compounds, including polyphenols, vitamins, peptides, probiotics, and essential oils, emphasizing improvements in stability against environmental stresses and enhanced gastrointestinal release behavior. Advances in multi-fluid electrospinning (coaxial and triaxial) and needleless electrospinning are examined for their scalability and potential in industrial adoption. Additionally, real-world case studies are presented to illustrate the integration of EHD nanostructures into functional foods, while challenges such as low throughput, solvent toxicity, and regulatory hurdles are critically assessed. Future perspectives stress the importance of food-grade polymer development, green solvent use, and process optimization for commercial feasibility. Overall, EHD-based encapsulation represents a transformative technology that bridges nanotechnology and food engineering, offering promising solutions for designing next-generation functional foods with improved health benefits, longer shelf-life, and enhanced consumer appeal.