Supercritical Fluid CO2 Extraction Technology to Produce an Innovative Healthy Product from Almond Wastes

In this work, we studied the potential of supercritical fluid CO2 technology to extract almond wastes and obtain a fibre product rich in minerals and phenolics without the use of an extraction co-solvent. The analysis of phenolics in the resulting extracted product was performed using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and showed vanillin, catechin, and dihydroxybenzoic, vanillic, and syringic acids as main phenolic compounds (PC). In addition, the analysis of minerals carried out using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) showed a wide range of macroelements like magnesium (Mg) and potassium (K) in quantities of up to 1.7 g/kg (Mg) and 6 g/kg (K), representing a value matrix that may be integrated into functional drinks targeting athletic people while promoting a circular economy and food up-cycling.