The significant potential of ionic liquids (ILs) in the extraction and
separation of valuable products from food samples is deeply discussed in this chapter,
where the main studies on the application of ionic liquids to food analysis are
presented. The novel extraction strategies reviewed in this chapter have the potential to
significantly enhance the extraction yield, in particular when the combination of ionic
liquids with accelerated and green extraction techniques, such as microwave-assisted
extraction (MAE), ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) or subcritical water extraction
(SBWE) are used. ILs are considered environmentally-friendly solvents and they offer
some advantageous properties which are particularly relevant in extraction systems in
food matrices, such as their low toxicity and volatility and different polarity,
hydrophobicity and selectivity. A particular section is devoted to microextraction
techniques with ionic liquids, which have shown great performance in the extraction of
valuable compounds for a variety of food samples. This chapter summarizes and gives
an overview of the latest developments and applications of ILs in the extraction of
bioactive compounds from food.
Keywords: Bioactive compounds, Food analysis, Green extraction techniques, Ionic liquids, Microextraction, Sustainable solvents.