It is interesting to see articles in this issue of the journal addressing a range of topics that should be of high relevance to the seafood industry. This includes new and efficient technologies for utilizing by-products and fractions otherwise considered waste that can now be used for high value products. One of the articles considers use of proteins obtained from by-products when processing anchovy. These proteins are used for making edible films for coating food products, thus improving quality and storage stability. This is a good example of how protein that would otherwise be wasted can now be used to improve other products.
The editorial in JAFPT Vol. 26 (4) considered articles on coating of fish fillets and commented that many manuscripts being submitted in this category were declined due to poor quality. It is thus a pleasure to see an article in this issue providing all details on how the edible films were prepared, thoroughly characterizing their properties, and giving a good explanation of the molecular mechanisms acting to give the films their wanted properties. Furthermore, as this topic is something frequently published, the article related their results to other findings in the most recent articles elsewhere in the literature; thus demonstrating knowledge of the cutting edge of research within the area.
I hope you will also enjoy the other papers published in this issue of the journal, containing other aspects of anchovy processing, like the effect of salt concentration on extremely halophilic bacteria and a novel technique for preparation of low-salt anchovy sauce. Other papers concern aspects like superchilling and partial freezing, simple technologies for converting salmon rest raw material into tasty feed ingredients, rigor development in sea bass, and effect of propolis on microbial parameters during storage, a rather new aspect for aquatic food product technology.
The papers presented have been submitted from Europe, the Middle East, China, and Japan, emphasizing the true international flavor of the journal. We welcome articles from all over the world but are conscious that the content must be of interest to the general reader. If the topic is mainly of interest to a local community or a limited region, the papers are usually recommended to be published in other media of relevance to the proper geographical areas. If the results presented are to be applied by the seafood industry world-wide, the content must be applicable to species and sources obtained globally. The policy has always been to focus on research results that have an interest for commercial production, so we will continue to reach out to the industry.